SAN FRANCISCO – Thursday's Pacific West Conference showdown with Concordia saw an impressive performance by Academy of Art men's basketball, as ART U managed to pull away early in the second half while the squad shut down CUI's shooting to start the frame as the Golden Eagles began 0-for-13 in their 75-54 loss to the Urban Knights. ART U now stands tall in first place in the PacWest standings after winning their seventh straight game, the longest streak in program history.

"I am really proud of how we played tonight, especially after our last outing down at Concordia," said ART U Head Coach Scott Waterman. "Our defense in the second half was great, holding them to six points in the first nine minutes. Offensively, we shared the ball and got to the paint which allowed us to shoot 55 percent. It was great to be back in the Bay Area, but now we have to refocus for a big road trip next week."

Although the Golden Eagles, now 9-8 overall and 6-5 in conference, remained right in it in a tight battle up until the half, they saw themselves trail for nearly the entire duration of the starting 20 minutes. A narrow two-point lead for less than 30 seconds a few minutes in would be the only advantage CUI would see in the entire contest, as ART U, now 13-5 overall and 9-2 in conference, managed to stay in front throughout the back-and-forth battle and entered the break up 29-24.

The Knights started the second frame off to a 6-0 run while CUI never found a score for the first five minutes of the period. Another 10-0 run followed shortly thereafter and ART U never looked back. Building upon their lead to as many as 28, the Knights cruised towards the end of back stretch and finished the game off at 75-54, holding the Golden Eagles to their second-lowest point total of the season as CUI shot just 36.5 percent in the contest. 

Junior forward Jamal Fuller led the team in points (16) while senior forward Latrell Williams followed behind also in the double-digits (12). The Knights saw their top four scorers shoot 50 percent or higher, which included Latrell Williams and Fuller, as well as junior guard Rodney Munson (9) and junior forward Isaiah Williams (9). Leading the team in rebounds on the season, Latrell Williams did so again in the contest with all being defensive (9) while Fuller was right behind on the team (6). ART U caused havoc on the defensive end, as they scored 32 points off turnovers compared to CUI's 12.

While no Concordia players managed to score double-digit points, Charlie Dalton led the team (9) while Jackson Tucker and Kobe Sanders managed eight apiece. Dalton also paced the squad in rebounds (7) while no other Golden Eagles managed to get to five.

It will be one week until the Urban Knights next take the court, as they look to keep their momentum on their next road trip when they take on Azusa Pacific on Feb. 1 and Point Loma on Feb. 3.