SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Despite a different type of game than the previous night, ART U men's basketball came out victorious once again in the CCAA/PacWest Challenge hosted by Dominican University. The Urban Knights were down by seven points at halftime, but used a big second period to earn the 57-55 win over Sonoma State. On Saturday, ART U was led by 15 points apiece from tournament Most Valuable Player sophomore guard Jase Harrison and All-Tournament Team selection junior forward Chris Salas.

"As a staff, we're pretty fortunate to coach a great group of young men," said head coach Julius Barnes. "They showed tremendous toughness in the second half and found a way to get it done tonight. Guys stepped up and made plays and I thought our defense down the stretch played a huge role in why we were able to come away with the win against a very tough opponent."

Sonoma State proved to indeed be a challenge from the outset as the Seawolves started with an 8-0 run before junior forward Herman Pratt IV and Harrison each converted layups to stop the streak. Though behind, the Knights kept themselves close with the long ball with sophomore guard Sergio Valdeolmillos and Harrison contributing three 3-pointers between them during a stretch midway through.

Then it was freshman guard Cobe Williams who scored five straight including a triple of his own to cut the lead to just 27-25 with three minutes and 17 seconds left. SSU, however, closed the half with their own 5-0 run to hold a 32-25 advantage at the break.

Senior guard Nick Cary started the second half by connecting for his first 3-pointer of the night then Salas later added his own shot from distance to keep ART U within striking distance at 37-31. Then, for a two-minute stretch, every time Sonoma State's defense turned around, it seemed as if Salas was draining triples or long-range two-pointers each time down. Though Salas could not convert a breakaway layup after Cary's block, senior center Trent Stokes was right there to put the ball in, tying the game 44-44 with 8:32 left.

Academy of Art continued to provide answers to SSU's conversions as Valdeolmillos' defense and steal turned into a fastbreak layup then Harrison later hit a jumper to make it a 50-50 ballgame. With 2:17 left, like before, Stokes crashed the offensive glass after a missed layup for a one-handed slam to energize the Knights both on and off the court and give his team the lead. Though James Slade attempted to shift the momentum with a 3-pointer, Harrison responded in kind the next trip down court and soon Seawolves free throws had the game knotted once again (55-55).

Both teams took shots the go-ahead triple, but neither would fall and, out of a timeout, Pratt worked himself free with a series of pivot moves to get an open look and the 57-55 lead. Now with six seconds left, SSU called timeout and drew up a play that saw James Davis take the potential game-winning 3-pointer, but it did not fall and ART U stayed perfect in its opening weekend.

The Urban Knights open 2015-16 with a 2-0 record after Harrison and Salas each posted 15 points apiece on a combined 12-for-20 shooting from the field and 6-for-9 from long range. Salas added nine rebounds and Pratt delivered 10 points including the game-winner.

"Spacing and ball movement are the two concepts that we stress every day in practice," said Barnes. "Anytime we can get the defense to rotate, we believe that someone will be able to get a good look at the basket."

Now 1-1 on the year, Sonoma State got 14 points from Davis along with 10 points and six rebounds from Luke Cochran. Academy of Art made SSU pay with an 18-2 advantage in points off turnovers.

ART U travels to Rohnert Park next weekend to face SF State (Nov. 20) then tips off a rematch with tournament host Sonoma State the following day.