2021-22 All-PacWest Teams

IRVINE, Calif. – A record-setting campaign has culminated in a trio of Pacific West Conference postseason awards for Academy of Art men's basketball, as junior guard Klay Brown was named the PacWest Defender of the Year while sophomore forward Latrell Williams was selected to the All-PacWest Second Team. Additionally, ART U Head Coach Scott Waterman was tabbed as the PacWest Coach of the Year. This marked the fourth consecutive season that the Urban Knights have been represented on an All-PacWest Team, and the total of three postseason awards are the most honors that ART U has received in a single season. 

Brown collected his honor through active defense, as he was named the PacWest Defender of the Week a whopping three consecutive weeks beginning on Jan. 10, Jan. 17 and Jan. 24, the most by an student-athlete in the PacWest this season. Not only did his average of 2.41 steals per game and total of 65 thefts lead the PacWest and set ART U records, Brown ranked seventh in all of NCAA DII for his swipes while his average was 12th. Work on the defensive boards was another factor, as Brown snagged a total of 111 defensive rebounds, the second-most this season on ART U. In addition to his steals, Brown totaled 12 blocks on the year. This is the first time in school history that an Urban Knight has collected the Defender of the Year award. 

"Klay brought a tremendous defensive presence to our team this year," Waterman said. "His length and athleticism caused our opponents problems and also allowed him to be one of the top steals leaders in the nation. Night in and night out, we could count on Klay on the defensive end of the court." 

The only All-PacWest selection on ART U was Williams, who was named to the All-PacWest Second Team after a season in which he poured in an average of 10.9 points per game while pulling down an average of 7.3 rebounds per game. Not only was the rebounding average third in the PacWest, it was the third-most in ART U history, while his total of 214 rebounds was the most in the PacWest and the second-most in ART U history.

Eight times this campaign Williams posted a double-double, ending the year in double figures offensively in each of the past five games, which included a pair of 20-point performances with a season-best of 21 against Azusa Pacific. Williams is just the fourth All-PacWest Second Team selection in ART U history (ninth overall selection). 

"Latrell's impact on this program during his first year has been tremendous," Waterman said. "He has a skill set that allows him to play both in the post and on the perimeter, and he has an incredible knack for rebounding. He plays so hard and this recognition is well deserved."

This season Waterman helped lead the Urban Knights to its most successful season in program history, setting new ART U records for overall wins (17) and conference victories (13) while securing the first overall .500 record or better in school history. A six-game winning streak in the early part of the year would be another program record, which included ART U's first ever victory over UC Davis for ART U's first ever regular season victory over an NCAA DI opponent.

Additionally, this year's Academy of Art squad set new program marks for points scored (2,174), scoring average (77.6 ppg), scoring margin (+3.3; only positive scoring margin in program history), field goal percentage defense (42.8 percent), total steals (288; fourth in NCAA DII) and steals per game (10.3; fifth in NCAA DII). Meanwhile, they also recorded the second-most rebounds (1,051) and assists (386) in school history. Waterman is the first coach in ART U history to be picked as the PacWest Coach of the Year. 

"It is truly an honor to be recognized by the coaches in the PacWest Conference for the season we have had," Waterman said. "However, this is truly a program award as our players and my assistants are the reason for the recognition, being committed to building a winning culture here at ART U."