Game #1
ART U Urban Knights (0-0) vs. SF State (0-0)
Saturday, November 13, 2021 at 2 p.m.
San Francisco – SF State Main Gymnasium
Live Stats | Live Video
 
Game #2
ART U Urban Knights (0-0) vs. Sonoma State (0-0)
Sunday, November 14, 2021 at 2 p.m.
San Francisco – SF State Main Gymnasium
Live Stats | Live Video

In pursuit of its third consecutive Pacific West Conference Tournament appearance, Academy of Art men's basketball steps into the 2021-22 season this weekend. Head Coach Scott Waterman will guide a talented roster made up of nearly half returners and half newcomers as ART U returns to a full PacWest schedule this year.

The Urban Knights begin the season with a tour of California Collegiate Athletics Association opponents, opening with the host of the SF State Tip-Off Classic on Nov. 13 then facing Sonoma State the following afternoon. Trips to Chico State (Nov. 17) and Cal State San Bernardino (Nov. 20) follow before ART U's first two home games against Stanislaus State (Nov. 23) and Saint Martin's (Nov. 26) inside Walter Gleason Gym in Belmont. A non-conference matchup with NCAA Division I UC Davis closes out the month on Nov. 28 before PacWest play begins with Academy of Art hosting Dominican on Dec. 4. ART U travels to Southern California to face Concordia (Dec. 9) and Point Loma (Dec. 11) then returns for a Dec. 19 date with Chaminade.

SoCal visits Academy of Art to open January with Azusa Pacific (Jan. 3), PLNU (Jan. 6), and CUI (Jan. 8) on tap ahead of a three-part Hawaii roadtrip to face UH Hilo (Jan. 13), Hawaii Pacific (Jan. 15), and CUH (Jan. 17). The Knights' first meeting with Fresno Pacific comes at home on Jan. 22 then a second SoCal swing features Biola (Jan. 27) and APU (Jan. 29). Exclusively in Northern California for the duration of February, ART U hosts Holy Names (Feb. 1), travels to Dominican (Feb. 5) and HNU (Feb. 11), then welcomes UH Hilo (Feb. 13), HPU (Feb. 17), and BU (Feb. 24) to Walter Gleason Gym. One final matchup with FPU comes on Feb. 26 before the PacWest Championship Tournament tips off from Fresno on Mar. 3-5. To view the 2021-22 schedule, click here! 

Uniquely, four graduate students and no seniors make up a portion of the team's upperclassmen as guard Joshua Bagley and forward Adrian Byrd-Jelinek return alongside incoming transfer guards Denny Slay and Deang Deang. Bagley enters his final collegiate season ranked second in program history in career field goal percentage (.400) as well as top 10 in career assists (132). Beyond his contributions to High Point, Slay scored over 1,000 points in his collegiate prep career while Deang, previously with Eastern Illinois, was an All-Region First Team honoree as a freshman.

Many familiar faces are among the Knights' junior class with guards Christian Popoola Jr., Jacob Smith, Grant Bellis, and forward Mike Asante all returning. Popoola Jr. serves as the top scorer, rebounder, and defender among returners after he averaged 10.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and 0.5 blocks in his debut spring season with ART U. Coming to Academy of Art from St. Thomas Aquinas College is junior guard Klay Brown who previously led an undefeated Abraham Lincoln High School team that was nationally ranked.

A trio of sophomores, guard Brian Rios plus forwards Cheickna Sissoko and Latrell Williams, are set to play their first games for the Knights in 2021-22. Rios, a transfer from Cochise College, comes off a season in which he was named Region 1 Conference Tournament MVP while Sissoko, a transfer from Pensacola State College, has shot over 50 percent from the field in his collegiate career and Williams, a transfer from Kennedy-King College, was a regular starter as a freshman, averaging over 17 points per game.

Returning freshmen are guards Maurice "Tre" Elrod and Syon Green while freshman guard Roy Bunn brings a stellar resume from Jesuit High School where he was All-State, All-League, Defensive Player of the Year, and a crucial part of the team's state championship run.

Deep throughout its roster with many new faces ready to make strong first impressions, Academy of Art men's basketball collectively brings both passion and drive into the program's 14 year.