Box Score

San Francisco, CA – History was made in dramatic fashion Thursday night inside San Francisco State's Main Gymnasium. The Academy of Art University men's basketball team used a last-second shot by junior forward Keith Davis to defeat Grand Canyon 60-58 and secure ART U's first PacWest victory in the history of the program. Impressive first half shooting had the Urban Knights up big early, and although the Antelopes battled back to tie the game, Davis sent everyone home happy when he dropped in a jumper in the waning moments.

“My team helped install a lot of confidence in me because I was struggling throughout the second half,” Davis said. “But in the huddle before the shot, my teammate Czar said, 'Keith's going to make this shot so after he makes it, stay composed.' So he really installed the confidence in me before I had it in myself and when he gave me the ball, I knew we didn't have much time and I took it straight to the rim. When I made it, I was so happy! That's my first college game-winner!”

“It feels really good to get a win against a quality opponent and a team that we have a lot of respect for,” Head Coach Mark Sembrowich said. “Obviously it's been something that we've been striving to get so it's great for the guys.”

Academy of Art University came out of the gate on fire, beginning with a fastbreak layup by senior forward Jonathan Burnett. Though the Knights made four of their first six shots, Grand Canyon stayed right with them as ART U held a 10-9 advantage four minutes in. From there, Academy of Art exploded offensively on a 12-2 run in which Davis and sophomore guard Ivan "B.J." Prema, Jr. knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers.

The Knights enjoyed a double-digit advantage briefly before GCU responded with a short 5-0 burst. ART U would not relent as Burnett, Davis, and freshman forward William Overton, Jr. all made baskets to keep Academy of Art in front. Up 35-26, the Urban Knights unleashed a 7-0 run with four made free throws and Davis' second triple of the evening. By halftime, ART U had established a 46-31 lead with a dazzling 62.1% shooting from the field in the period.

“I think a lot of what was key for us was getting stops and not having to play from behind,” Coach Sembrowich said. “We were able to get some stops and go down and get some baskets and then get some more stops. They changed defenses a couple of times and we knocked down a couple of shots. I think that really helped.”

A layup by Burnett to begin the second half grew the Knights' margin to 17 points, but Grand Canyon responded by initiating a 9-1 burst. The teams would fight back and forth through the middle of the period before another run came from GCU. This time, the 'Lopes logged a 12-2 push that eventually tied the game, 58-58. With possession and 34 seconds remaining, Academy of Art considered a variety of plays and three timeouts were called as the final play was crafted.

When ART U was able to run its offense with 14 seconds on the clock, Davis took the ball confidently inside against tough Grand Canyon defense and knocked down a difficult shot from within the painted area. The Urban Knight faithful roared with excitement and after a half court heave by the 'Lopes missed, the celebration began.

“Keith had 16 points in the first half and really propelled us," Coach Sembrowich said. "Then he had two points in the second half which were a big two. We had the ball with 34 seconds to go and we called a play. I just thought 34 seconds was a long time for us to try to hold the ball so we called timeout and set it up again. We were able to get the ball to Keith and he had some options there and he took advantage of one of them: he drove it hard and got that thing to a tight spot. It was huge for us.”

Davis finished the night with a game-high 18 points to go with eight rebounds and two assists. For the third time this season, Burnett achieved a double-double by way of 13 points and a career-high tying 12 rebounds (five offensive). Overton, Jr. added 11 points and four rebounds. Defensively, freshman guard Czar Robotham had an impressive game and ended with five points, three rebounds, two assists, as well as two steals. Off the bench, Prema, Jr. and freshman center Noah Koné-Nelson combined for nine points. Academy of Art improves to 4-12 overall, 1-5 in PacWest play with the victory.

“I really thought Jon, with his points and rebounds tonight and the energy that he brought, really made a big difference for us,” Coach Sembrowich said. “He really guarded tough. I thought Czar did a really good job. I mean Kyle Speed is one of the finer point guards in our league and Czar had a big challenge on his hands and as a freshman, I thought he played pretty well.”

For the 'Lopes, forward Chris Johnson led with 12 points off the bench. He was the only GCU player to reach double figures as three others registered seven points apiece. Guard Kyle Speed, who leads the PacWest in assist-to-turnover ratio, was limited to two points with no assists and two turnovers. The loss drops the Antelopes to 7-6 overall record, 2-1 in the PacWest.

“[This win] is huge,” Davis said. “The Hawaii trip, four games in nine days, had us struggle in the beginning of conference play so we knew that we were going to have a lot of home games coming up. We lost our first one, but to get one, that can help us turn our season around. We've always stayed confident and stayed positive and now that we've actually gotten a win, it shows that all the hard work pays off. We're extremely excited and happy!”

Part three of the Knights' five-game homestand comes Tuesday, Jan. 25 against Hawaii-Hilo. Tipoff is scheduled for 9:30 PM following the women's game. Please check www.artuathletics.com for any changes to time or location.