BELMONT, Calif. – In what was the definition of a back-and-forth Pacific West Conference battle, Academy of Art men's basketball got timely baskets late in regulation to force overtime, where they put away Dominican and walked away the victors by a final of 80-75 on Tuesday. 

"This afternoon we had a hard fought victory," said Urban Knights Head Coach Scott Waterman. "We have made some significant improvements but still have a ways to go to be playing ART U basketball. With that being said, it was great to get a win when we didn't play our best basketball. Down the stretch, our guys had great energy and made some big plays that won us the game."

Neither team led by more than eight points for the entirety of the game and while the Penguins (1-2, 1-2 PacWest) were up by that margin with nine minutes to go, a 9-0 Urban Knights (2-4, 2-4 PacWest) run late set the stage for some clutch baskets down the stretch. Trailing by five with just over 90 seconds remaining, senior guard Joshua Bagley came off of a screen set by senior forward Josh Hill and nailed the floater in the lane. A good defensive effort by ART U forced a tough Domincian jumper, and after a rebound from Hill, junior guard Jalen Lovett would call for an iso before drilling a step back 3-pointer to force overtime. 

The extra frame was all tandem offense from Hill and senior guard Stefan Milivojevic, as the duo combined for 11 of ART U's 13 points in overtime. A Milivojevic jumper opened the period, which the Penguins answered with a pair of free throws from Jordan Williams, but on the ensuing possession Milivojevic was fouled on a shot from downtown resulting in three looks from the free throw stripe.

Those looks would put ART U ahead for good, though it took one final clutch response from Bagley, the only other Knight to score in overtime, to ice the victory after a Dominican 3-pointer cut the lead to just one. Trying to run down the time, junior guard Christian Popoola Jr. hesistated before driving to the middle and kicking the ball out Bagley at the 3-point line, where he got a Penguin to bite on a pump fake before taking a step in and knocking down a quality look. 

"Our free throw percentage and rebounding opportunities were the difference in the game," Waterman said. "We will need to have two great days of practice to get ready to play Dominican again on Friday and Saturday."

Four Urban Knights wound up finishing in double figures, as Hill and Milivojevic tied for a game-high 20 points while Popoola Jr. added 12 and Lovett chipped in 11. It was yet another double-double effort for Hill, snagging his fourth of the campaign after nearly missing out on another this past Saturday, as he snatched 17 boards, the third time this season he's had at least 17 rebounds in a single game. Helping to distribue the ball all over the court was Bagley, ending his night with six assists, his most in a game since he had six against FPU on Jan. 30. Overall it is the fifth time he has tallied at least six helpers in a game. 

Romeo Mays paced the Penguins both in the scoring and rebounding department, capping off a double-double performance with 19 points and 15 rebounds. Meanwhile, Christopher Williams II kicked in 15 points and four assists, while Jaelen Ragsdale also had 15 points. 

The two teams will run it back from the same location of Walter Gleason Gym on Friday, but with a new start time of 5 p.m.