OAKLAND, Calif.-It was a battle of defenses on Tuesday night as the Urban Knights fell to the Holy Names Hawks 71-60.
 
Looking to shake off the rust from the holiday break, both teams entered 2016 looking to make a bigger dent in their respective win columns.
 
After winning the tip, HNU quickly put three points on the board. However, ART U would respond with a 9-0 run with three points each from sophomore guards Uchenna Okeneme and Jase Harrison, and junior guard Herman Pratt IV.
 
Academy of Art would take their now 9-3 lead and continue to dominate the first half with contributions from all sides. Nine out of 10 players on their roster registered at least one rebound in the first half and they held the Hawks to a 31.3 percent field goal percentage.
 
With 5:21 remaining, redshirt junior guard Sergio Valdeolmillos would sink his only three of the night, giving the Urban Knights a 10-point, 29-19 lead (their largest of the contest). Holy Names would fight back however, as the Hawks' Joshua Crum scored seven unanswered points, trimming ART U's lead to three with 4:27 left in the period.
 
For the next four minutes, the two teams would trade points, until the horn sounded, leaving the Urban Knights with a 35-32 advantage as they headed to the locker room.
 
In the second half, the Hawks slowly chipped away at the lead until Blake Watkins' triple tied the game at 40 points after five minutes had expired. However, HNU would not take the lead until two minutes later when Crum scored another trey, giving the Hawks an advantage which they would not relinquish.
 
ART U continued to fight hard however, coming within one point on four separate occasions and junior guard Chris Salas even tied the game at 60 with 3:25 remaining. However, from that point on, the Hawks would score 11 unanswered points to end the game.
 
The Urban Knights had contributions from several different players including Pratt and Harrison who posted identical lines with 11 points and eight rebounds, while redshirt junior guard Marshawn McMahan tallied a career-high 10 points. As a whole, the bench scored 27 times while Holy Names only scored 16.
 
ART U heads back across the bridge to compete at home on Thursday against Point Loma at 2:30 p.m. and Hawaii Pacific on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.