Niners Win in Basketball opener
The Charlotte 49ers opened their 2016-2017 campaign with a win over Newberry College (SC) 101-88 in thrilling fashion. Sophomore Jon Davis lead both teams tonight with 28 points on 9-12 FG and a perfect 3-3 shooting from beyond the perimeter. Sophomore Andrien White scored 20 and senior point guard, and Charlotte native Braxton Ogbueze finished with 22. The biggest story was White's return after a summer injury in a preseason tournament in Canada.
It was a slow start for the 49ers offensively and defensively. Charlotte was unable to take the lead early and stick with it. Three point defense and rebounding were also two facets they seemed to struggle with in the first half. Although Charlotte lead after the first 20 minutes 41-38, the score seemingly did not reflect the game. Newberry jumped out to an early lead after knocking down several 3s which caused the 49ers some trouble in the first half. Newberry put up 40 three point shots in their exhibition against South Carolina, connecting on 18 of them (45%). But Charlotte rallied behind its own three point man: Andrien White who knocked down four in the first half and six overall finishing 6-13.
Charlotte started out flat again in the second half allowing turnovers and small scoring spurts for the Wolves, while not being able to establish their offensive mojo. With 10:23 left in the game, the 49ers trialed by 10, 67-57 and mustered a rally behind point guard Jon Davis. Davis's layup and aggressive ability to get to the hoop at the 10:18 mark fueled a 23-3 run over the next five minutes to bolster their lead to ten, 80-70. Davis accounted for 16 of his 28 in this dominate five minute stretch. He also had company in last year's three point leader Braxton Ogbueze with eight points in the final six minutes including two threes and two blocks. Big man JC Washington finished with a very quiet six points and two blocks in the 2nd half.
Charlotte's halftime adjustments by second year head coach Mark Price paid off in dividends, as the Niners outscored Newberry 60-40. Coaching is another big story on campus at Charlotte with proven coach Mark Price. Price told reporters this offseason that his second summer with the team was easier than the first and that they look to establish a fast tempo offense.
Charlotte for the game shot 36-68 and 11-27 from behind the arc compared to Newberry's 31-72 and 15-29 respectively. The Wolves boasted 14 offensive rebounds compared to Charlotte's 10 giving both teams 41 rebounds on the night. Newberry out assisted and out stole Charlotte 18/16 and 13/7 respectively.
Charlotte's next game is on Monday November 14th at Elon, and at home on Thursday against ECU.
Aaron Blake
UNC Charlotte
