Game #26
ART U Urban Knights (10-15, 8-10 PacWest) vs. #6 Azusa Pacific Cougars (21-3, 16-2 PacWest)
Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020 at 7:30 p.m.
Azusa, Calif. – Felix Event Center 
Live Stats | Live Video
 
Game #27
ART U Urban Knights (10-15, 8-10 PacWest) vs. Concordia Eagles (19-8, 13-5 PacWest)
Saturday, Feb. 22, 2020 at 5 p.m.
Irvine, Calif. – CU Arena
Live Stats and Live Video
 

METTLE TESTING
After a record-setting week in which the Urban Knights went 2-0, one of the toughest stretches of the schedule this season lies ahead, with ART U making the trek down to Southern California to take on two of the top-four teams in the Pacific West Conference. The two-game trip begins with the nationally ranked No. 6 Cougars of Azusa Pacific, and concludes with Concordia as the Urban Knights, just a half game out of the sixth spot in the PacWest, continue their push for the conference postseason tournament.
 
TIP-OFF
The battle with the No. 6 Cougars will start at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, while the tip time with Concordia is set for 5 p.m. Remember to follow @ARTU_Knights via the athletics app (Apple App Store, Google Play Store) and on Twitter & Instagram, as well as "Like" the Urban Knights on Facebook for score updates, videos, and recaps. 
 
KNIGHT WATCH
The Urban Knights twice set the record for shooting percentage in their two wins last week, knocking down 62.7 percent of their shots in a 99-85 victory over Holy Names before making 64.2 percent of their looks in a 91-74 victory over the Vulcans of Hawai'i Hilo. Ball movement was also a big key for ART U, as they set a new program record for assists with 26 against HNU, topping the 24 against The Master's College on Dec. 30, 2011. That mark was followed by 19 helpers against UHH, the 13th time this season in which the Urban Knights have tallied at least 15 assists. Juinor guard Stefan Milivojevic was rewarded with his second career PacWest weekly honor for his efforts, totaling 51 points on 20-for-25 (80 percent) shooting from the field, including hitting 7-for-9 (77.8 percent) of his looks from beyond the arc. It was a career high in points for Milivojevic, as he finished with 32 on 13-for-15 shooting, topping the 31 he scored earlier this season against Chico State. The performance also set a career record for most field goals made in a single game for Milivojevic, beating his old record of 11 on 13 shots back on Nov. 27, 2019 against Chico State, and was the second most field goals in program history. After finishing just one rebound shy of a double-double against the Hawks, junior forward Josh Hill got his ninth of the season against the Vulcans, ending with a career-high 21 points (8-for-11) and 12 boards. Redshirt senior guard Victor Ruiz de Carranza and junior forward Adrian Byrd-Jelinek each set career-bests for assists during the week, with Ruiz de Carranza recording nine assists against the Hawks, while Byrd-Jelinek notched seven against the Vulcans. 
 
Among the PacWest leaders, Milivojevic remains the fourth-highest scorer, averaging 17.7 points per game, but has climbed to third in shooting percentage at 55.9 percent. He also remains in the top spot for 3-point field goal percentage by draining 49.6 percent of his looks from deep, and has jumped up six spots nationally to third place in that category. Other Urban Knights that find themselves on the PacWest leaderboards are Hill, Ruiz de Carranza, and junior guard Joshua Bagley. Hill and Ruiz de Carranza are fifth and 11th, respectively, in rebounds per game, with Hill averaging 7.4 per game and Ruiz de Carranza with 6.2 per game. Bagley finds himself the top-10 for assists, coming in eighth with an average of 2.9 per game.

RECORD CHASING
As the season winds down, a few Urban Knights are drawing ever closer to the record books. Milivojevic, already the career 3-point field goal leader with 134, currently finds himself tied for second in career scoring with 827 points. He shares second place with William Overton Jr. (2010-12), and trails only the 876 points by Ameer Shamsud-din (2011-13) for first place. A career scoring average of 10.9 points per game would tie Milivojevic with Chris Salas (2015-17) for sixth place all-time at ART U. Milivojevic's total of 20 buckets last week gives him 284 for his career, fourth-most in ART U history. Ahead of him in third place is Uchenna Okeneme (228; 2014-18), with Overton Jr. in second place with 297. 
 
Milivojevic is also chasing a number of single-season records, beginning with 3-pointers made, as he owns the mark for most 3-pointers in a single season with 68. Second place is where Milivojevic sits for scoring average, as his 17.7 points per game is just ahead of the 17.2 that Alexis Moore averaged during the 2013-14 season, and is only 0.1 behind the 17.8 averaged by Andrija Blatancic during the 2018-19 season. With 443 total points this year, Milivojevic is now third for scoring in a single season, climbing all the way from 10th this last week. He has just topped the 438 by Alex Carmon in the 2013-14 season, and now looks up at second place Alexis Moore (465; 2013-14) and record holder Ameer Shamsud-din (466; 2011-12). In field goals made in a single season, Milivojevic catapulted to a tie for fourth with Keith Davis (2010-11) with 157. He is only five away from the all-time record of 162 set by Andrija Blatancic in 2018-19, with Alexis Moore (160; 2013-14) and Ameer Shamsud-din (161; 2011-12) in second and third, respectively. 
 
Finding himself in second place for rebounds in a career is Ruiz de Carranza, as his total of 341 rebounds trails only Hunter Hayden's 612 (2008-12) in ART U history. Ruiz de Carranza is second to none in career rebounding average, as he is tops on the list with an average of 6.4 rebounds per game for his career (minimum 30 games played).
 
Hill (185), along with Ruiz de Carranza (160), are into the top-10 in rebounds for a single season, as Hill vaulted up to second after a 21-rebound week, while Ruiz de Carranza is tied for seventh. Hill just passed the second-place mark of 181 set by Ruiz de Carranza last season, and is only 17 behind Andrija Blatancic's all-time record of 202 rebounds from last season. Ruiz de Carranza trails sixth place Hunter Hayden's 167 from the 2008-09 season.

CHASING THE COUGARS
The Cougars, ranked No. 6 in the nation, have already clinched their spot in the PacWest postseason tournament, as they hold onto the top spot with four games left. They have won 16 straight games, with their last loss coming against Chaminade back on Dec. 4, 2019 by a final of 96-85. Of those 16 wins, 13 have come by double-digits, as they boast both the best offense and defense in the conference, putting up an average of 82 points per game while allowing just 68 points per game. Selom Mawugbe is the player to watch, averaging a double-double with 16.9 points per game and 10 rebounds per game, with the scoring coming on 74.1 percent shooting which leads the entire nation. APU got the best of ART U in their first matchup back on Jan. 2, winning 76-59, and the Cougars lead the all-time series, 11-1.

FLIGHT OF THE CONCORDIA
While the Eagles have clinched their spot in the PacWest postseason tournament, their seed as yet to be determined, as they currently sit in third place due to a tiebreaker on winning percentage with Chaminade. A loss the last time out to Dominican snapped a four-game winning streak, but Concordia has still won six of the last eight games. Three players are averaging double-figure points, led by Rob McCoy with 13.1 points per game and Andre Green with 12 per game. McCoy is also the top rebounder with 6 per game, while Green is second in the PacWest in steals with 1.9 per game. The Urban Knights will be looking for revenge against the Eagles, having dropped the first matchup to Concordia by a score of 70-65. The Eagles are leading the all-time matchup 6-1, and will face off against Notre Dame de Namur prior to taking on the Urban Knights. 

LOOKING AHEAD
The final stretch of the year lies around the corner, as they host Point Loma for senior day before closing out the season against NDNU on Saturday.