How shaky shooting cost Charlotte 49ers in loss to Charleston

The college basketball season is young and the Charlotte 49ers are still looking for some offensive rhythm.

Charlotte’s shooting problems continued Saturday in a 81-72 defeat against College of Charleston at Halton Arena. Give the Cougars credit: They’re known as a strong defensive team and they played like it against the 49ers (1-2), who made just 43.5 percent of their shots, turned the ball over 17 times and saw the Cougars swat seven shots away.

“For some reason we’re having trouble scoring the ball,” said third-year 49ers coach Mark Price, whose team shot 34.6 percent in a loss earlier in the week at Oklahoma State. “That’s kind of new for us; we never have trouble scoring the ball. But we have to figure this out. We’re forcing things too much. We’ve got to move the ball and be better offensively.”

The experienced Cougars, who return five starters from last season, jumped to an early lead and were up by as many as 17 late in the first half. But the 49ers never let the Cougars get completely out of reach, thanks mostly to forward Najee Garvin, who had a career-high 19 points and three rebounds.

The 49ers cut the lead to six points on a jumper by guard Austin Ajukwa with 52 seconds left. But Charleston made 10-of-12 free throws down the stretch, more than good enough to hold the 49ers off.

Three who mattered

Garvin: Charlotte’s sophomore forward came off the bench to score a career-high 19 points on 9-of-17 shooting. He also had three rebounds and a steal.

Andrien White: 49ers guard had 17 points – including 3-of-4 from 3-point range – and a team-high nine rebounds. But he also had seven turnovers.

Joe Chealey: Cougars point guard led his team with 29 points (5-of-7 3-pointers) and had three steals.

Observations

▪ Charleston more than upheld its reputation as one of the country’s top defensive teams in the first half, holding the 49ers to 31.3 percent shooting, blocking six shots and forcing 10 49ers turnovers.

▪ The 49ers got a lift heading into halftime when Luka Vasic followed a missed 3-pointer by point guard Jon Davis as the buzzer sounded, cutting the Cougars’ lead to 37-25.

▪ Davis struggled with his shot (6-of-17 for 16 points), but had six assists.

▪ Charleston’s pressure defense was so effective that at one point 49ers freshman guard Ryan Murphy dribbled the ball off the leg of Davis and out of bounds. Davis appeared to be trying to set a screen in the backcourt, but Charleston’s defenders trapped him into Murphy’s way.

Worth mentioning

▪ Charleston guard Cameron Johnson got a little too enthusiastic with a dunk, doing a few chin-ups while hanging on the rim. He was called for a technical, but the 49ers couldn’t take advantage when Davis missed the free throw.

▪ Charleston sophomore forward Jaylen McManus played at North Mecklenburg High, where he led the Vikings to the semifinals of the state playoffs during his senior season. Another Cougars player, junior walk-on Jermaine Blackmon, played at Davidson Day.

▪ The Cougars played without forward Jarrell Brantley, a second-team All-Colonial Athletic Association player last season, who is out four to six weeks with an injured ankle.

▪ Friday’s game was the first of a four-game homestretch for the 49ers, who face Presbyterian on Monday, High Point on Friday and Davidson on Tuesday, Nov. 28.

Quoting

“When we play the right way, we’re moving the ball. And we weren’t moving the ball tonight. We’re holding the ball too long looking for the open man, then we’re not in rhythm when we’re shooting.” – Price.

“They’re really active, pressuring the ball in gaps. It made it really difficult at times to get open.” – Garvin, on Charleston’s defense.

This story was originally published November 18, 2017 at 10:32 PM with the headline "How shaky shooting cost Charlotte 49ers in loss to Charleston."