Academy of Art University men’s basketball may have finished its 2009-2010 season without a win, but the team’s future remains as bright as ever. The Urban Knights were 0-26 overall, 0-16 in Pacific West Conference play and yet they pushed some of the league’s top programs to the limit on multiple occasions.
Under new Head Coach Mark Sembrowich, AAU began its second year in program history on Nov. 15 with a matchup against Cal State Monterey Bay of the California Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAA). The Knights played a strong second half but were unable to complete the comeback in a 66-52 loss. Staying on the road, Academy of Art met The Master’s College in Santa Clarita, CA on Nov. 21 where junior guard Phillip Samuel got hot from long range, buried four 3-pointers, and finished with what would become a season-high 25 points.
After competing in the Western Washington Tournament, the Urban Knights faced off against their lone Division I opponent of the season, Loyola Marymount, on Dec. 2.
Academy of Art had a breakout performance from freshman guard
Ivan "B.J." Prema, Jr. who went for 16 points and nine rebounds in the 91-72 defeat at the hands of the Lions. All in all, it was a positive experience for AAU who had its highest scoring mark to that point in the season.
“LMU was a terrific test for our young team and it was a game that we can look back at and say we battled,” Coach Sembrowich said. “But it didn't carry any more significance than say, a league game.”
In the Knights’ only home contest against a non-PacWest team,
Academy of
Art fought
Simpson University to the final buzzer on Dec. 15. AAU was down by as many as 15 points late in the second half and proceeded to unleash a 19-3 run, but a last-second field goal resulted in a 73-71 Red Hawks victory. Sophomore guard
Devin Williams had arguably his best game of the year with 17 points, nine made free throws, seven rebounds, and five assists.
Academy of Art wrapped up its non-conference season with two more tournaments, hosted by Humboldt State and Seattle Pacific respectively, which were highlighted by an extremely close Dec. 19 contest versus Chico State. The Knights led at halftime and withstood a second-half surge by the Wildcats. An intense final three minutes saw AAU come within one point, but Chico State held on and won 63-58.
The Urban Knights then began their historic first PacWest Conference season in January with a five-game homestand. Hawaii Pacific was in town on Jan. 7 and Academy of Art was up to the challenge of facing the top team in the league at the time. AAU used two separate first-half runs to counter the Sea Warriors height and rebounding advantage coming in. Just minutes into the second period, Samuel gave the Knights a lead on two free throws and while HPU eventually went on a run to retake the lead for good, this was an important step for the young Academy of Art squad.
Returning from a week-long
Hawaii roadtrip, AAU was set for its inaugural Homecoming Game at Kezar Pavilion on Mar. 13 versus Notre Dame de Namur University. The largest and most spirited crowd of the season came out to watch a thriller. From a reverse dunk by sophomore forward
Josiah Jungsten to back-to-back 3-pointers by senior guard
Weleh Dennis, the fans were treated to an unforgettable first half. Then, late in the second half,
Burnett made two critical layups to keep the game close and
Prema, Jr. buried a long ball in the final 12 seconds to bring the Knights within one point. Freshman guard
Jordan Knox had one final chance to tie the game with a buzzer-beater, but it did not fall and NDNU prevailed 59-57.
Late in the year, the Urban Knights scored their most points of the season in an 88-77 road loss to Dixie State on Feb. 27. AAU shot a blistering 50 percent from the floor in the opening period and even reeled off 11 straight points to take the lead. Foul trouble helped the Red Storm respond to the early Academy of Art offense, but the Knights kept the pressure on with another run to start the second half. AAU still completed its final road game on a positive note even though Dixie State converted its free throws to earn the win in the end.
On Mar. 4, the final contest of the season put Academy of Art men’s basketball against BYU-Hawaii, one of the best teams in the country. Although the Knights fell 99-69, Burnett saved his best for last. He came off the bench to achieve two new season-highs with 18 points and 12 rebounds versus the strong Seasiders big men. A run by BYU-Hawaii eventually led the visitors to victory, but Burnett was able to keep AAU close yet again with his rebounding prowess early on.
“The culture we started was made up of hard work and a ‘never say die’ attitude,” Coach Sembrowich said. “That will be carried forward to next year.”
When the 2009-2010 campaign had concluded, just a fraction of a point per game (ppg) separated the Knights’ top two scorers.
Samuel finished the year leading with 9.4 points per contest, while
Burnett followed with an average of 9.3 ppg.
Burnett also led the team in field goal percentage (.556) and was ranked fourth in the PacWest in that category.
“Both Phillip and Jonathan had good moments this year and hopefully we will use some of those moments to springboard into the 10-11 season,” Coach Sembrowich said. “Both of them need to become more consistent and they have the ability to do that. They are working hard to prepare for next season already.”
Prema, Jr. and junior guard
Lance Olivier were both significant additions to AAU this past season.
Prema, Jr. served as a versatile player with skills in rebounding, long-range shooting, and his efficiency at the foul line. The freshman guard finished with the highest free throw percentage of any Urban Knight after 31 made out of 34 attempts (.912).
Olivier, who came to
Academy of Art as the shortest player in the NCAA, showed off his speed and unselfishness throughout the year. In 19 of his 26 games,
Olivier led the team in assists and wrapped up the year high atop the category (93).
In his senior season with
Academy of Art,
Dennis finished with the best three-point shooting percentage on the team (.367) and had his breakout game against NDNU on Mar. 13.
Dennis posted a season-high 17 points (4-for-5 from beyond the arc), seven rebounds, two assists, and two steals versus the Argonauts.
AAU’s second year in program history concluded with a 0-26 overall record, 0-16 in the PacWest
. Nevertheless, the energy, effort, and determination shown by the young Urban Knights this season gives them much to build on and they will undoubtedly see many victories in the coming years.
“It was a learning experience for all involved,” Coach Sembrowich said. “For myself, I received quite an indoctrination upon becoming a head coach. I think the fact that we fought all the way until the end of our season leaves me with hope as we have already begun getting ready for next year. We will have some experience returning at every position and we are working hard to bring in some talented recruits that will be able to help right away. The combination of those two should see us much improved.”