San Francisco, Calif. -- In its first home game of the season, the Academy of Art University men's basketball team (0-6) dropped a 73-71 decision to Simpson University (2-10) on a last-second basket by the Red Hawks.  Junior guard Devin Williams finished with a season-high 17 points (including 9-of-11 from the foul line), seven rebounds, and five assists while junior guard Phillip Samuel posted 16 points with three 3-pointers.

“A lot of things today; we hurt ourselves,” Head Coach Mark Sembrowich said. “We will get better at some of them. We just have to keep fighting to give ourselves another chance like this. We had an opportunity to win the game and we didn't get it done.”

The contest began with an 8-0 run by the Red Hawks, but that push was quickly ended when Samuel knocked down a 3-pointer. AAU had a tough stretch shortly thereafter in which the Knights committed four fouls and reached six fouls as a team with more than 15 minutes to play. Academy of Art then responded with a 9-0 run in which junior forward Jonathan Burnett scored a layup on a fast break to give the home team its first lead.

From there, the teams remained close until a 7-0 burst by the Urban Knights put them up 27-18 with just over five minutes remaining in the half. AAU would take a 10-point lead, 35-25, into the halftime locker room.

The lead grew for Academy of Art in the second period before Simpson University was able to cut it down with an 11-0 surge midway through. The Red Hawks then created a 15-point advantage with five minutes remaining, but Williams came back with seven points during a 14-2 run and the Knights led 70-69 with 1:19 left in the game. A Simpson layup gave the visitors the lead again and Williams then took center stage when he was fouled and sent to the line. He made one of two free throws to tie the contest, but a jumper by the Red Hawks fell with five seconds left and Simpson took home the victory.

“We fouled too much,” Coach Sembrowich said. “They got 40 free throws and made 30. We took some bad shots and ran a dry spell a good chunk of the second half. The kids did a really good job of fighting to get back in it. I believe it was 65-51, we took the lead by one point, it just didn't prove to be enough.”

Behind Williams' team-high 17 points and Samuel's 16 points, Academy of Art University also had a strong game from freshman guard Jordan Knox who came off the bench to post 12 points. The 17 points from Williams bested his previous season-high by eight points and came in 19 minutes of action.

“To score 17 points in 19 minutes is good,” Coach Sembrowich said. “[Williams] was active on the boards and was our leading rebounder. He had two wild turnovers at one point in the second half so we took him out and when we put him back in, he responded. He played well.”

The Red Hawks were led by 23-point performances from both guard Justin Sparks and forward Dwight Bond. Sparks and Bond each made 13 free throws in the contest and were the only Simpson players to reach double figures. Forward Jason Stubbs turned in 13 rebounds to lead the team.

Academy of Art University men's basketball plays in its second tournament of the season on Dec. 18-19 in Arcata, CA.  The Knights begin with host Humboldt State on Friday at 7:30 PM and then Chico State on Saturday at 5:30 PM.