Box Score

St. George, UT – Academy of Art University Women's Basketball made it 11 Pacific West Conference wins in 2013-14 with a 98-85 victory over Dixie State on Thursday evening inside Burns Arena. The Urban Knights rallied back from a halftime deficit in a big way with a program record 61 second half points, finishing the game with 33 points scored off 30 Red Storm turnovers. Regina Camera led five ART U players scoring in double figures with 21 points.

"It felt good to get a win at Dixie," head coach LaNay Larson said. "That's our first program win there and something we talked about going into the game."

As both teams established scoring options early, Zoie Sheng knocked down two free throws and DSU's Haley Holmstead, the PacWest's leading scorer and 15th in the country, put in a jumper in the opening minute. Then it was a quick 6-0 run by ART U keyed by offense from Camera and Jasmin Guinn followed by a swift Red Storm response before the first break in the action. Forthan's layup broke more than a minute scoring drought by both teams, but Holmstead answered.

Academy of Art held a slight margin over the next few minutes though Dixie State captured a 22-21 lead at 9:14. The Red Storm pushed with a 7-2 run and continued to hold an advantage though both teams would go scoreless for extended stretches as the turnovers began to pile up. ART U responded with its own 7-2 burst initiated by Portland, OR natives Forthan, Sheng, and Sha'Nice Storey.

That stretch resulted in a 36-34 margin for the Knights, but a Holmstead layup in the final 30 seconds gave Dixie State their 38-37 halftime lead. Though Homlstead started off the second period with a layup, the Knights never allowed their opponents a lead greater than six points as Molly O'Brien converted a jumper with 16:55 left to make it 49-45.

"I thought we struggled first half, lacked some emotion, and didn't finish on the offensive end," Coach Larson said. "We talked at halftime about separating ourselves and I thought when we pulled away down the stretch we showed what kind of team we are."

Soon the game was tied 53-53 thanks to a three-point play converted by D'Andree Galipeau. Her play did more than simply knot the score, however, because ART U then burst ahead on a 12-0 run that included a Sheng triple on an inbound pass and a jumper in the lane by Storey. Up 62-53 with half a period left, Academy of Art maintained its margin with Camera consistently getting to the basket for layup after layup.

Back-to-back layups by Taylor Maynes brought DSU to within four, 75-71, but O'Brien and Forthan each quickly scored on put-backs. A Taylor Mann jumper gave the Red Storm one final chance down three with 4:35 left, however, Camera and O'Brien worked in tandem to build the lead back up. Then, in the final two and a half minutes, ART U outscored DSU 12-5 and rolled to a new single half scoring record (61) en route to the98-85 victory.

"I like what I saw the last 10 minutes in our confidence, effort, and composure," Coach Larson said. "If we play like more consistently, we are a very scary team!"

The Urban Knights, who have won four in a row, are now 14-6 overall and 11-1 in PacWest play. Camera delivered a team-high 21 points (8-of-16 FG) while Forthan offered her fifth consecutive double-double in the form of 19 points (7-of-8 FT) and 11 rebounds along with three blocks. Sheng added 18 points and the five Knights scoring in double figures were rounded out by O'Brien (12 points) and Storey (11 points on 3-of-7 3PT).

Dixie State moves to 8-10 overall, 6-6 in conference play despite a game-high 27 points (11-of-17 FG) from Holmstead. Miller added 21 points with all of her 18 shots coming from beyond the three-point arc.

Academy of Art remains on the road for its next contest this Saturday, Feb. 1 at Point Loma inside Gold Gym in San Diego. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:00 PM.

"Defense and rebounding always will be our focus because those two things enable us to get out and run which makes us a great team offensively," Coach Larson said.