OAKLAND, Calif. – Though Academy of Art men's basketball twice held a lead in the closing moments of its Pacific West Conference clash with Point Loma on Thursday, ART U was not able to put the game away and was handed its first PacWest loss of the season at the hands of PLNU to split the season series, 92-85 in double overtime. 

Despite a low-scoring first half in which neither team hit the 30-point mark or held a lead larger than six points, it was in the second frame when things got interesting as the lead would change hands back-and-forth. While the Sea Lions (7-7, 3-3 PacWest) held the three-point edge at the break, it was the Urban Knights (8-5, 4-1 PacWest) who largely played from ahead in the half even if was never larger than a five-point margin. 

The final three minutes of regulation started with a pair of one-and-one's by ART U, as both junior guard Klay Brown and graduate student guard Denny Slay would convert their opportunities at the line in erasing what had become a four-point deficit after one of Brock Mackenzie's five 3-pointers for Point Loma. Only up by two, the ART U lead would disappear after a pair of free throws by Kaden Anderson, but was regained with a dagger three ball by Slay and less than two minutes to go. Defensive pressure ratcheted up with only one more bucket in regulation, a Point Loma shot from downtown that tied the game and force the first overtime. 

For the first few minutes of overtime, all points were scored from the free throw line, ending that sequence with a PLNU layup that gave them a three-point cushion with two minutes to go. A connection from beyond the arc by Brown and a jumper from graduate student forward Adrian Byrd-Jelinek seemed to flip the momentum, until yet another Mackenzie 3-pointer once again put the Sea Lions back on top.

Short-lived was the PLNU lead, as a jumper in the paint from graduate student guard Joshua Bagley once more swung the game in favor of the Knights, while a layup from graduate student guard Deang Deang with six seconds left seemed to be the last of the contest. However, just like the first battle between the two teams that came down to a final shot, PLNU would force yet another overtime with a 3-pointer, this time coming from Anderson with just 0.3 seconds left on the clock. 

Overtime number two would see the Knights hold just a brief lead early on thanks to a pair of free throws by Brown and a jumper from Slay, but the final pair of Point Loma three-balls would stop all ART U momentum. From there, the Sea Lions iced the game at the charity stripe and handed the Knights their second consecutive loss despite scoring above 75 points. 

Five Urban Knights ended the contest in double-figures for the fifth time this season led by the career-high 20 points from Bagley, the first time in his career hitting the 20-point mark. Trailing closely behind was Slay with 19 points of his own, reaching double-figures for the fifth straight game, while Deang chipped in 17. Just missing out on a double-double was a pair of Knights in Brown and sophomore forward Latrell Williams, the latter of which paired 13 points with his eight rebounds. Brown was an all-around force in the game, totaling 10 points, eight rebounds, five steals and four assists. 

It will be a short turnaround for the Urban Knights, as they will return to the court this Saturday against Concordia from Tobin Gymnasium at 3 p.m.