Charlotte 49ers rally against UTEP, but miss chance to end losing streak
The Charlotte 49ers came back, then fell painfully short Thursday in an 87-86 Conference USA loss against Texas-El Paso at Halton Arena.
UTEP’s Paul Thomas hit a short jumper with two seconds left, sending the 49ers (5-19, 1-12 C-USA) to their 11th consecutive defeat. It broke a six-game losing streak by the Miners (8-17, 3-10), who also won their first road game of the season.
The 49ers trailed by 22 points in the first half, but rallied to take the lead midway through the second half. When point guard Jon Davis made two free throws with 9 minutes, 21 seconds left, the 49ers took a 73-72 lead, an advantage they stretched to seven points after a Jaylan McGill 3-pointer with 5:57 left.
But UTEP didn’t completely fold, and when Davis missed the front end of a one-and-one with 21 seconds left, the Miners had a chance. UTEP point guard Evan Gilyard missed from close range with six seconds left, but the ball went out of bounds after at least two 49ers couldn’t corral the rebound.
Thomas took the ensuing inbounds pass, dribbled and hit the game-winner.
Three who mattered
Austin Ajukwa: His 24 points led Charlotte, including 13 in the first half when he was 3-of-4 from 3-point range.
Jon Davis: 49ers point guard had 12 points and nine assists, but missed a key free throw with 21 seconds left.
Paul Thomas: UTEP forward had 15 points and 11 rebounds, also the game-winning basket.
Observations
▪ After getting off to slow starts in recent losses against Southern Mississippi and Louisiana Tech, the first 12 minutes were absolutely brutal for Charlotte, which fell behind 29-7. The 49ers didn’t make their third basket until White made a 3-pointer with 11 minutes, 33 seconds left in the half. But that actually started Charlotte’s first-half comeback.
▪ Both teams made nine 3-pointers in the first half. Andrian White and Ajukwa each hit three for Charlotte, which was 9-of-14.
▪ Freshman guard Jaylan McGill provided a spark for Charlotte’s rally. He hit a 3-pointer to get the 49ers to within 10 points and also had two assists in the first half.
▪ The shorthanded 49ers also had White (21 points) and Luka Vasic (12) in double figures.
▪ Charlotte again played without guard Ryan Murphy (out for the season with a broken foot). Freshman forward Bryant Thomas missed his third straight game with a foot injury.
Worth mentioning
▪ Play of the game came when the 6-foot-3 Davis dunked on UTEP’s 7-1 center Matt Willms, giving the 49ers a 69-68 lead with 12:35 left.
▪ The game was a battle of the interim coaches. Charlotte’s Houston Fancher replaced Mark Price, who was fired in November. UTEP’s Phil Johnson stepped in for Tim Floyd, who abruptly retired in November. Fancher’s first game in charge at Charlotte also came against an interim coach, East Carolina’s Michael Perry, in what was a victory for the 49ers.
▪ Charlotte’s chances of qualifying for the 12-team C-USA tournament took a big hit with the loss. The last-place 49ers are now two games behind 12th-place UTEP with five games left in the regular season.
▪ The 49ers paid tribute pregame to Harvey Murphy, Charlotte’s first basketball coach who died Feb. 5. Murphy had a 44-81 record in six seasons from 1965-70.
▪ The 49ers play Saturday against Texas-San Antonio at Halton Arena. UTEP stays on the road against Old Dominion.
Quoting
“You’re one or two plays away from what you’re working for. But as a coach I think back to the first 10 minutes of the game, not the last 10 seconds of the game.” – Fancher.
“We talked about slow starts all week. We need to work on that and we’ll be fine.” – Fancher.
“It hurts, but it’s not even that last few minutes. It’s stuff that happened throughout the game. You can’t pinpoint one thing. It’s hard to ignore the slow start.” – Ajukwa.
“There’s not too many times I’m going to argue when we have three guys going after a rebound. I’ve been begging for that, so I can’t complain.” – Fancher, on the 49ers failing to grab that last rebound.
“I don’t know. I’d be lying to you if I thought I had an answer.” – Fancher, on why the 49ers continue to start slow.
David Scott: @davidscott14
UTEP 87, CHARLOTTE 86
UTEP (8-17): P.Thomas 6-9 2-4 15, Willms 4-8 3-6 11, Osborne 8-15 3-4 22, Gilyard 6-12 8-8 22, Harris 4-6 0-0 11, Flaggert 0-0 0-0 0, Smith 0-0 0-0 0, Wade 0-2 0-1 0, Touchet 0-1 0-1 0, Magee 2-3 0-0 6. Totals 30-56 16-24 87.
CHARLOTTE (5-19): Supica 0-3 1-2 1, Haslem 2-2 4-6 8, Davis 5-8 2-3 12, Ajukwa 7-13 5-6 24, White 5-9 8-9 21, Garvin 1-5 0-0 2, McGill 2-4 0-0 6, Vasic 4-8 0-0 12. Totals 26-52 20-26 86.
Halftime—UTEP 53-45. 3-Point Goals—UTEP 11-20 (Harris 3-3, Osborne 3-6, Magee 2-3, Gilyard 2-4, P.Thomas 1-2, Willms 0-1, Wade 0-1), Charlotte 14-24 (Ajukwa 5-7, Vasic 4-5, White 3-6, McGill 2-4, Davis 0-2). Fouled Out—Vasic. Rebounds—UTEP 28 (P.Thomas 11), Charlotte 26 (Garvin 9). Assists—UTEP 14 (Gilyard, P.Thomas 4), Charlotte 14 (Davis 9). Total Fouls—UTEP 20, Charlotte 20. A—3,059 (9,105).
This story was originally published February 15, 2018 at 9:57 PM with the headline "Charlotte 49ers rally against UTEP, but miss chance to end losing streak."