DAVIS, Calif. – Opening their 2017-18 season with an exhibition road game, Academy of Art University women's basketball clashed with defending Big West Conference champion UC Davis inside The Pavilion on Friday evening. The Aggies lived up to their No. 20 national ranking in the CollegeInsider.com Preseason Mid-Major poll, defeating the Urban Knights 77-34.

"I thought it was a really good test for our kids to come in and play what I feel is one of the better DI teams on the West Coast," said head coach LaNay Larson. "We knew coming in that they were very experienced and returned their entire starting lineup and all but one player from their conference championship team a year ago."

The Aggies opened the game on a 20-4 run, converting eight of their first 11 shots. Sophomore guard Karleigh Joseph had the first bucket of the contest for ART U and it was sophomore guard Ines Medina who provided a spark off the bench with five points including a 3-pointer early in the second quarter.

UC Davis continued to shoot well from the field and from distance (6-for-13 at the half), opening what would become a 41-9 lead at halftime.

Redshirt senior Pre'Franz Dominick came alive on both sides of the court in the third quarter, hitting three consecutive jumpers while notching a block and a steal as well. The third was the Knights' highest-scoring quarter (14 points) with free throws plus a 3-pointer by senior forward Helena Orts supplementing Dominick's early work.

Though Academy of Art nearly matched UC Davis offensively in the final quarter, the Aggies held their lead the rest of the way, winning 77-34 in the end.

"We came out timid and didn't play with very much confidence in the first half," said Larson. "We knew we were a much better team than we showed and I think you could see glimpses of what we can do in the second half. There are plenty of opportunities for us to evaluate and learn from this game and I feel the whole experience will be very beneficial to us moving forward."

Dominick would finish with seven points to lead ART U while Joseph, Orts, and senior guard Jazzlyn Brewster each had five points apiece. Orts grabbed a team-high six rebounds and Brewster added a team-best four steals.

For UC Davis, Morgan Bertsch tallied 14 points, Nina Bessolo contributed 13 points, and Pele Gianotti posted 11 rebounds plus eight points.

Academy of Art officially begins its season on Nov. 10 as the host of the West Region Tip-Off Classic. The Knights will face Montana State Billings at 5 p.m. inside Kezar Pavilion following the tournament's opener – Holy Names and Cal State East Bay at 3 p.m.

"We are excited to have a week to continue to get better and get back on the court against two very quality opponents next week," said Larson.