RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Academy of Art roared back from an early, 31-point deficit thanks a career-first double-double from junior center Cameron Niven and senior guard Kendall Brown matching a career-best 22-points. However, despite coming within 10 points with 12.3 seconds to play, the Urban Knights could not complete the comeback, falling to Saint Martin's to open the CBU Thanksgiving Classic.
 
The Saints looked dominant to open the first half, going on a 17-0 run which stretched over the game's opening six and a half minutes. Junior guard Zuri Williams got on the board first for ART U at the 13:33 mark, knocking down all three free-throws after being fouled while attempting a triple. The Saints went on to lead by as much as 31 points in the period and simply could not miss, shooting 64.7 percent from the field and 70 percent from beyond the three-point arc in the first ten minutes. However, the momentum swung the Urban Knights' way as the half drew to a close: fueled by six points by Brown, Academy of Art went on a run of their own, posting 11 unanswered points to finish out the half. Their streak included a buzzer-beater by Brown, making it a 43-25 game as both sides headed to the locker rooms.
 
To open the second period, ART U rattled off six more consecutive points before SMU could find the basket, reducing the deficit to just 12 points. From there, the struggle continued back-and-forth for the remainder of the game. The Urban Knights' defense was in full-force as the deficit never dipped below 19 points and they cut the Saints' field goal percentage down to 37.1 percent from a scalding, 53.1 percent in the first period. Academy of Art continued to pull closer as the minutes wound down, but 10 points was as close as they would come as the time ran out on their comeback-bid.
 
The Knights' come-from-behind attempt was fueled by Niven's double-double. The Castro Valley, Calif. native posted career-highs in both points (15) and rebounds (11) while also contributing a block. Brown was team's scoring leader on Friday night, matching a career-high with 22 points and totaled six boards as well.
 
Now 0-5 to begin the season, Academy of Art will return to action on Saturday at 5:00 p.m. when they face Missouri S&T. The contest will be their final matchup of the CBU Thanksgiving Classic and their last non-conference game of the season.