SAN FRANCISCO – Tenacious defense, balanced offense, and a determination to triumph were the hallmarks of a 2021-22 Academy of Art women's basketball season that concluded as the program's best in the last six years. Following a strong start in which the Urban Knights began Pacific West Conference play 7-2, Head Coach Krystle Evans' fourth year on the sidelines picked up significant momentum with a seven-game win streak that carried ART U through the end of the regular season and into the PacWest Championship Tournament title game. Ultimately, Academy of Art made its fourth appearance in the NCAA Tournament and celebrated a truly resurgent campaign.

"Each student-athlete who suited up this year committed to bringing this this program back to relevance," Evans said. "I am grateful to our young women for being adaptable on and off the court and playing their hearts out, leading us to our most successful season in the last six years. Practice and games relocated and rescheduled because of COVID, online classes for the second year in a row, a roster that featured six freshmen and two transfers, losing our leading scorer and starting point guard to injuries, we could have easily given up, but instead we continued to find ways to succeed. If I were to describe this team with one word, I'd say resilient."

After an exhibition at NCAA Division I UC Davis got things started in early November, ART U opened up by hosting both Cal State Monterey Bay and Simon Fraser. Foreshadowing the stingy defense the Knights would play for the rest of 2021-22, the Otters were held to single digit scoring totals in the first two quarters of an eventual 70-42 Academy of Art victory on Nov. 13 then a much more closely-contested Nov. 15 matchup with SFU was won in overtime 59-56 as freshman forward/center Alisha Wilson and graduate student guard Joy Krupa each posted double-doubles with the latter adding PacWest Defender of the Week honors for her eight blocks and five steals in the first two contests.

A trip to Turlock next featured what would end up being a postseason preview as ART U met Cal State East Bay on Nov. 19 during the Warrior Classic. Though losses to the Pioneers and tournament host Stanislaus State (Nov. 20) evened Academy of Art's record, three or more Knights scored nine or more points in each contest to reflect the team's versatility.

In her first collegiate start thereafter, Wilson finished just three blocks shy of the program's first triple-double in a competitive Nov. 24 matchup with NCAA DI San Jose State that helped her earn PacWest Defender of the Week. ART U soon returned to its winning ways using early long range offense and transition points to best Sonoma State 68-53 on Nov. 27 in not only the month's finale, but also the last tune-up prior to conference play.

Though six Knights scored in double figures in the team's PacWest opener hosting Dominican on Dec. 4, the Penguins ended up prevailing by four points 70-66. That result would become just a memory as Academy of Art next claimed a pair of victories over Concordia and Point Loma in Southern California. A career-high 21 points from freshman guard Alyssa Munn and crucial steal in the last seconds by freshman guard Brooke Rodgers factored heavily in the 64-61 win over CUI on Dec. 9 then it was junior guard Lauryn Manns who took a turn as the squad's scoring leader with 15 points in a 68-60 result at PLNU on Dec. 11. Meanwhile, Wilson collected her second PacWest Defender of the Week award thanks to five blocks and four steals on the trip plus a season-best 18 rebounds against the Sea Lions.

ART U's final non-conference contest of the calendar year then came on Dec. 14, pitting the Knights against a Western Washington team who was ranked No. 10 at the time and would go on finish as runners-up to the NCAA Champions. Just 9-4 at the end of the first quarter, the game shifted in the third and ended with WWU on top 57-43, but not before junior guard Chanel Stuart posted her first double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

"We played a challenging non-conference schedule that featured two teams in the West Regional and two Division I teams," Evans said. "As a result, we were battle-tested by the time conference play began."

Though unexpected changes to the schedule ensued in early January following a break in the action, Academy of Art was able to continue to build momentum against PacWest opponents with a 70-61 triumph in its Jan. 6 rematch with Point Loma, a game that saw the emergence of redshirt freshman guard Kaila Murrell (12 points including four 3-pointers) and freshman forward/center Christy Ojide (12 points, 15 rebounds). That pair would combine for 27 points in the subsequent 67-41 domination of Holy Names on Jan. 8 where the Hawks were held to just 28.6 percent shooting from the floor.

Out for its longest roadtrip of the regular season, ART U found itself on the Hawaiian Islands for a trio of PacWest matchups. On Jan. 13, the first went UH Hilo's way despite a near comeback, but history was soon made on Jan. 15 as Stuart erupted for 42 points and 10 3-pointers, breaking both program records (tying the PacWest record in the latter) in an 82-59 win over Hawaii Pacific. After having picked up a PacWest Defender of the Week selection for her stretch of seven straight games with three or more steals, Stuart was an unquestioned PacWest Player of the Week honoree following that performance. The time away from the mainland concluded with the Knights using 19 points off 26 turnovers in a dominant 70-59 victory at Chaminade on Jan. 17.

"In conference we improved each game, but I thought the turning point was at Hawaii Pacific," Evans said. "Milan [Tuttle] showed signs that she could be one of the best point guards in the conference that game and we were locked in defensively. It was the first time that our team's identity as a tenacious group was on full display for 40 minutes."

What became a six-game road swing then took Academy of Art to SoCal once again where, on Jan. 27, the Knights' 20 steals and 30 points off 28 turnovers powered an 83-61 win over Biola before No. 3 Azusa Pacific stopped the three-game win streak. ART U would rebound in a big way by on Feb. 1 against HNU, breaking program records with 39 turnovers forced and 28 steals while keeping the Hawks to single-digit point totals in the final two quarters of an 84-39 victory. Murrell dropped a career-high 21 points to lead four Knights scoring in double figures.

As the PacWest Championship Tournament picture began to take shape with a month left in the regular season, ART U took a pair of tough losses to Dominican (Feb. 5) and Concordia (Feb. 6) on back-to-back days. Despite a breakout 20-point performance from freshman guard Milan Tuttle against the Penguins and double-doubles for both Wilson and Ojide versus the Eagles, both games turned their opponents' way in the final minutes.

Academy of Art would not lose for the remainder of the month, however, as an impressive streak of seven consecutive wins began with a 56-47 result over UH Hilo (Feb. 13) and a 66-59 victory to sweep the season series with Hawaii Pacific (Feb. 17). Season-high scoring efforts from Ojide and Manns led the way in the rematch with the Vulcans then Wilson's season-high of 22 points came with 11 rebounds in the Knights' big second half comeback against HPU.

The regular season's final week was particularly memorable, beginning with a thrilling 69-67 overtime triumph versus Fresno Pacific on Feb. 20 that saw contributions from up and down the ART U lineup. Four days later on Feb. 24, Academy of Art honored its senior class of Stuart and junior guard/forward Ladun Akako prior to besting Biola 77-64 after crucial offense from Tuttle, Manns, and fittingly Stuart in the late stages. One last rematch with FPU came on Feb. 26 and it was a 14-0 run in the final seven minutes (which contributed to just five Sunbird points in the fourth quarter to tie the program record for fewest points allowed) that propelled the Knights to a 64-53 win and ultimately the third seed in the PacWest Tournament.

"We finished conference play on a five-game win streak which provided great momentum going into the postseason," Evans said.

Approaching the team's fifth appearance in the conference tournament, the trio of Wilson, Stuart, and Manns were each honored with All-PacWest Team awards after Stuart had paced the team in scoring, Wilson led the conference in rebounding and double-doubles, and Manns, who became the team's fourth player to earn PacWest Defender of the Week for the final week of the regular season, added one of the higher plus/minus averages on the squad. Both Stuart and Wilson would log double-doubles (Wilson's 14th on the year) to lead Academy of Art to its 59-54 victory over UH Hilo in the tournament quarterfinals on Mar. 3 as the postseason commenced. The following night on Mar. 4 had the Knights convincingly defeat Point Loma 77-62 in the semifinals as Rodgers went off for a career-high 22 points to lead four players scoring in double figures.

"During our seven-game win streak we were short-handed and our depth was on full display," Evans said. "Christy made huge strides during that stretch. We embraced a 'next woman up' mentality and it fueled us into the postseason."

Reaching the PacWest Tournament title game for the first time since 2014, ART U led No. 13 Azusa Pacific at halftime and had 30 bench points by the end yet could not hold on, falling 60-49 on Mar. 5. Both Stuart and Tuttle ended up being named to the All-Tournament Team, but the season would not end there because "Academy of Art" appeared on the NCAA Tournament Selection Show the following evening, meaning that a trip to the West Regional round was next.

"I cried hearing our name called during the selection show because so much work went into turning this program around," Evans said. "Hearing our name called was the culmination of an amazing year."

Seeded eighth and matched up with regional host No. 15 Cal State East Bay on Mar. 11, ART U battled through a first quarter in which both teams scored in the single digits before the Pioneers made their move in the third. The Knights outscored their opposition in the fourth, but a 67-49 win for CSUEB, eventual runners-up to regional champ Western Washington, spelled the end of a historic run.

For a squad that set new defensive records like fewest opponent points allowed (61.0) and blocks per game (5.2), was a top contender in the PacWest throughout 2021-22, and gained valuable postseason experience, the future remains bright.

"This young group revived the program," Evans said. "After getting a taste of the postseason, we cannot take this spring and summer for granted. Next season starts now."