Hot-shooting Charlotte 49ers roll over USC Upstate, end two-game losing streak
For a half, the Charlotte 49ers played the kind of efficient basketball coach Ron Sanchez dreamed of.
Over the first 20 minutes of Saturday’s 83-47 win against USC Upstate, Charlotte connected on an impressive 68.2 percent of its shots while limiting its turnovers to five against six assists.
Malik Martin and Jordan Shepherd combined to outscore the Spartans 24-21 as the 49ers raced to a 41-21 lead at the break. Neither missed a shot during that span, hitting all eight shots between them, including five from 3-point range.
“I don’t think we’ve been able to do that yet during my time, to shoot the ball that well, to share it that well in a half,” Sanchez said. “For the most part, when you don’t turn the ball over, you usually get a few more possessions to let your offense work and build confidence as you go.”
Said Martin: “That’s definitely part of the emphasis day in and day out. Every day we preach the same things: run our offense with patience and take open shots with confidence. Defensively, we just try to get stops with every possession.”
Charlotte, which broke a two-game losing skid, was almost as efficient in the second half as Sanchez went deep into his reserves and he 49ers’ advantage grew as large as 43 points. Five Charlotte players scored double digits, including starters Jahmir Young (12 points) and Drew Edwards (11 points) along with reserve Cooper Robb, who tossed in 11.
“The guys were really attentive since our return from Georgia,” Sanchez said. “The staff did a really good job of preparing us in such a short term. I think the guys did execute everything well. We shot the ball well, starting with Malik. ... We seemed organized and the pressure organized us.”
Records: USC Upstate 1-7; Charlotte 3-3.
Three who mattered
Malik Martin: With 14 points on 4-of-4 shooting in the first half alone, he was also perfect on 3-point shots as Charlotte built a 20-point lead at the break. He finished with 16 points.
Jordan Shepherd: Shepherd matched Martin’s accuracy in the first half, hitting all four shots for 10 points, including both 3-pointers.
Jahmir Young: Pulled down a team-best eight rebounds for Charlotte in addition to scoring 12 points.
Worth mentioning
▪ The 49ers limited USC Upstate to 35.5 percent field-goal accuracy for the game.
▪ Charlotte nailed 11-of-24 3-point attempts, including 7-of-12 in the first half.
▪ No one from USC Upstate broke into double figures. The closest was forward Bryson Mozone, who finished with nine points on 3-of-8 shooting.
▪ Charlotte converted 15 USC Upstate turnovers into 29 points and outscored the Spartans in the paint 30-20.
▪ The 49ers improved to 3-0 at Halton Arena.
They said it
“You see one go in, you know another one comes your way and you let it go. I was definitely feeling it a little bit.” — Martin
What’s next
USC Upstate hosts Eastern Kentucky on Tuesday. Charlotte takes on UNC Asheville at Halton Arena on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
This story was originally published November 30, 2019 at 6:54 PM.