Jon Davis scores 24 points, leads Charlotte 49ers over Presbyterian

The Charlotte 49ers looked shaky for much of their game Monday against Presbyterian at Halton Arena. But the 49ers pulled themselves together in time to beat the Blue Hose 83-74.

Junior point guard Jon Davis scored 24 for the 49ers (2-2), who trailed the Big South’s Blue Hose (1-4) by five points at halftime.

Either side of halftime was a chore for the 49ers, who failed to score in the final 5 minutes, 49 seconds of the first half. Presbyterian then scored the first five points of the second half to go up 43-33 with 18:55 left.

But the 49ers, fueled by Davis, outscored the Blue Hose 50-21 the rest of the way. Charlotte took the lead for good on a 3-pointer by Austin Ajukwa with 12:29 remaining.

The 49ers, who struggled with their shooting in losses against Oklahoma State and College of Charleston, made 54.5 percent of their shots against Presbyterian, including 10-of-21 from 3-point range. Charlotte also outrebounded the Blue Hose 36-25, with center Jailan Haslem pulling down seven.　　　

Three who mattered

Davis: 49ers’ point guard added seven assists and three steals to his 24-point night.

Milos Supica: Charlotte’s freshman forward made an impact off the bench with 11 points and five rebounds.

Davon Bell: Presbyterian’s point guard, who played at Charlotte’s Northside Christian, had 27 points and four assists. He hit 4-of-5 3-pointers.　

Worth mentioning

▪ Presbyterian’s Bell repped his his hometown of Charlotte with a large “CLT” tattoo on his lower leg.

▪ The 49ers play again Friday at home against High Point, another Big South team. Presbyterian plays Nicholls State on Thursday in a Battle 4 Atlantis regional game in Baltimore.

▪ The 49ers moved the ball and shot better than they did in a loss against the College of Charleston for much of the first half. But then the Blue Hose outscored the 49ers 11-0 over the final 5:48 of the half to take a 38-33 lead at intermission.

Observations

▪ Supica, who is from Belgrade, Serbia, showed a nice touch around the basket and some much-needed toughness for the 49ers.

▪ Freshman guard Ryan Murphy scored 11 points in the first half, including a 3-pointer he banked in. Murphy shrugged at the 49ers’ bench as he ran back upcourt.

▪ Freshman guard Luka Vasic got his first career start, replacing Ajukwa in the lineup.

▪ The 49ers will remain in Charlotte during the Thanksgiving break. Price and his wife Laura will host the team for Thanksgiving dinner.

Quoting

“He got animated. (The referees) don’t like that.” -- 49ers coach Mark Price on a technical foul called against guard Andrien White.

“They’re a college basketball team. You can’t allow them to come in and feel good about themselves.” -- Price, on Presbyterian’s halftime lead.

“I started attacking their pressure and trying to score. That’s why we scored better. We could spread it out more and get better shots. -- Davis.

This story was originally published November 20, 2017 at 9:35 PM with the headline "Jon Davis scores 24 points, leads Charlotte 49ers over Presbyterian."