BELMONT, Calif. – In a game that saw 12 lead changes and neither team lead by more than eight points, Tuesday's Pacific West Conference women's basketball rematch between Academy of Art and Fresno Pacific was fittingly determined in the final seconds. Tied with under a minute to go, ART U had a chance for the win in their last possession, but the Sunbirds held on for a 79-78 victory. Junior guard Lauryn Manns erupted for a game-high 30 points while, fresh off her game-winner over FPU three days prior, junior guard/forward Ladun Akako added 13 points and 11 rebounds in 21 minutes off the bench.

Making its first appearance inside Walter Gleason Gym, Academy of Art initially battled back from a 7-2 Fresno Pacific start with five points from redshirt freshman guard Kaila Murrell's five points keying a 7-2 response. ART U dominated the final portion of the opening quarter, outscoring the visitors 11-5 during a stretch which featured consecutive makes by both freshman guard Alyssa Munn and Akako.

That momentum carried into the second where a pair of 3-pointers by Manns helped build a 28-20 advantage for the Knights. Heating up from long range, FPU answered back with an 11-2 run and would have had a larger halftime lead had it not been for junior guard Chanel Stuart's triple with 30 seconds left to make it just a one-point game, 43-42, at the break.

The Sunbirds began the second half by establishing their largest lead at 50-42, but it did not last long as Manns scored five points to spark a 12-2 finish to the third quarter, shifting Academy of Art back in front 64-60. From a 68-68 tie, Fresno Pacific went ahead with a 6-1 burst yet a huge triple from Akako with a little over two minutes left made it a one-possession contest yet again.

After Akako's free throws tied things up, FPU was looking at a 79-76 advantage with nine seconds left. Though a chance to tie from the field did not fall, Murrell's free throws did and, after the Sunbirds' foul shots did not, a half-court heave would have won it for ART U, but the end result was FPU holding on 79-78.

Now 1-3 overall and 1-3 in PacWest play thus far, Academy of Art saw Manns become the 12th student-athlete in program history to score 30 or more points with 18 of those coming in the second half. She was 12-for-21 shooting from the field and added five rebounds plus three assists. In her second game of the year, Akako posted 13 points and 11 rebounds and offered a +12 for the highest +/- on the team. Munn contributed season-highs of 14 points and nine rebounds while Murrell's 11 points rounded out the four Urban Knights who scored in double figures.

The win puts Fresno Pacific at 5-5 overall and 5-1 in conference play here in the 2020-21 season. Rachel Berry was the Sunbirds' leading scorer with 19 points as well as 10 rebounds and eight assists and Breanna Hurt offered the team's lone double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Part of three newly-added games, the Urban Knights are set to face Dominican for the first time this year on Tuesday, Mar. 2 at 1 p.m. back inside Walter Gleason Gym.