Davidson routed Charlotte 49ers, and Bob McKillop knows why his team is better now.

For the Davidson Wildcats, it was a matter of trust. For the Charlotte 49ers, it was another hard lesson learned.

Davidson beat the 49ers 76-56 Tuesday at Belk Arena on Tuesday, claiming the Hornets’ Nest Trophy for a sixth consecutive time against its Mecklenburg County rivals. The Wildcats (6-1), more experienced and talented than the 49ers (2-3), shot a season-high 51.9 percent and had a two-to-one assist-to-turnover ratio (16-8), and held the 49ers to 36.2 percent shooting.

But the biggest difference?

“The trusting of each other, to be in support mode on defense,” Wildcats coach Bob McKillop said. “Making the extra pass on offense and throwing it inside, too. That’s what made the difference for us.”

That kind of connectivity led to three Wildcats scoring in double figures – sophomore guard Kellan Grady (25 points), junior guard Jon Axel Gudmundsson (20) and freshman forward Luka Brajkovic (12).

After holding three consecutive opponents to under 45 percent shooting, the 49ers allowed Davidson to hit 51.9 percent from the field.

McKillop worried after a victory Saturday against Northeastern that his team wasn’t meshing enough offensively. Against Charlotte, Davidson found its rhythm. In Brajkovic, a 6-foot-10 freshman from Austria, the Wildcats have an offensive presence under the basket they haven’t had in several seasons. He made 4-of-5 shots, some of them delicate hook shots, and made all four of his free throws.

“We wanted to get the ball to Luka,” Grady said. “His decision making was really good. He was really efficient.”

The 49ers stuck with the Wildcats in the first half, trailing 35-27 at the break. But things fell apart quickly for Charlotte as Davidson scored the first five points of the second half and never looked back.

“We came out and played a really solid first half,” said first-year 49ers coach Ron Sanchez, who started four freshmen along with senior point guard Jon Davis. “To be on the road, starting four freshmen, I was really encouraged. I said in the locker room, ‘Keep this up and we can make this a ball game, hopefully in the last four minutes.’

“We didn’t do a good enough job coming out the same way we ended (the first half). They punched us first. They put us on our heels.”

The 49ers’ starting lineup for their first road game of the season didn’t include senior center Jailan Haslem, who missed the game for “team reasons,” according to Sanchez.

So it was a tough atmosphere for Charlotte’s four freshmen starters – guards Cooper Robb, Brandon Younger and Malik Martin and forward Dravon Mangum – to get tossed into.

“This is their fifth game of their careers, on the road at Davidson,” said Davis, who led Charlotte with 16 points.”They’ll be fine. We can’t hang our hats on this game.”

The 49ers might have missed the 6-10 Haslem’s bulk inside, but sophomore forward Milos Supica came off the bench and had a solid game, scoring 14 points and grabbing seven rebounds.

This story was originally published November 28, 2018 at 6:59 AM with the headline "Davidson routed Charlotte 49ers, and Bob McKillop knows why his team is better now.."