So this blog has a few haters out there. For them, this clip is for you: For the Haters Only (NSFW language)

Now that we have that out of the way, on to the new season!

First on the slate is Charleston Southern, who are slated to win the Southern Division of the Big South Conference. Personally I think that’s a step above the California Penal League, but  since the Niners are coming off a 13-17 season, there’s little room for mockery. The Buccaneers, who are led by Barclay Radebaugh (that name screams either inbreeding or trust fund, really having a hard time choosing), boast a squad featuring two-preseason All-Big South selections in Saah Nimley and Arlon Harper. The two guards despite being a little undersized at 5’8 and 6’1 respectively, managed to average just north of 26 ppg, forming the core of a potent back court which figures to be the Buccaneers’ strength. Strong perimeter defense by the Niners, particularly likely starters Pierria’ Henry (preseason A-10 All-Defensive team) and Terrence Williams, will be important if the Niners hope to win with rumors of suspensions and injuries swirling (more on that later).

As strong as the Buccaneers are in the backcourt, they are equally weak in the front court with the graduation of All Big South and DPOY Kelvin Martin. With Martin’s graduation, CSU loses their leading scorer (15 ppg) and rebounder (9 rpg). With no clear heir apparent to anchor the backcourt, CSU will have to look for rebounding and post-scoring by committee. Senior Mathiang Muo (9.8 ppg last season) will likely lead the undersized front court in scoring and the Buccaneers will hope for contributions from newcomer Allie Fullah and Sophomores Paul Gombwer and Greg Dorleus, the latter being the only CSU player over 6’7.

The Niners will counter with a squad that has a blend of experience and youth, and at least from a positional standpoint, depth. That depth may be challenged if unconfirmed rumors of Chris Braswell being suspended are true. Braswell was head-and-shoulders the best player on the squad last year and is expected to lead a team hoping to compete in the A10 this season. Also potentially inactive are Jr. DeMario Mayfield and Sr. JT Thompson, both of whom are dealing with injuries. Mayfield per his twitter was cleared to resume practice earlier this week; however, his ankle may not be 100% and thus the team may wish to hold him out for better conditioning and  a complete recovery. JT Thompson on the other hand is dealing with the lasting effects of successive season-ending ACL tears.

So assuming the worst case scenario that the Niners will be down three upperclassman (and remember, none of this is confirmed… we’d love to be “wrong” even though we’re not saying they’re out), the Niners will likely look to their defense to generate offense. Points off turnovers and transition baskets will be critical for a team that will likely struggle to score in the half court with the absence of Braswell and Mayfield. Fortunately for the Niners, the depth in the front court may mitigate offensive struggles with superior rebounding, as athletic forwards like Darion Clark and Willie Clayton could control the glass against the undersized Buccaneers. Whatever the situation tonight, Niner faithful will expect a win and rightfully so. Coach Alan Major will have to do a lot of that this season to stem calls for his ouster should the Niners against struggle in a pivotal season. Major has his players, now it’s time to win with them.

Prediction 1: Niners 65 – Buccaneers 59 -assumes no Braswell

Prediction 2: Niners 76 – Buccaneers 61 -assumes Braswell plays

Take a deep breath, we’re in the home stretch. The Charlotte 49ers (13-14, 5-9) host the Duquesne Dukes (15-13, 6-8) with a chance to leap frog the Dukes in the standings with the Atlantic 10 Tournament six days away. Duquesne comes in to the game having lost four of their last five contests with the win being a ten point win over Fordham.

The Dukes are a running team. They average 72.2 PPG and shoot 44.7% from the field, but the scoring drops to 62 PPG in road games, including three games of 50 or less points (a feat we have yet to accomplish with our offense). Coach Ron Everhart depends on BJ Monteiro, a 6-5 205 lb. G-F, and his 14.8 PPG to set the offensive pace. Monteiro versus Javarris Barnett will be an interesting match-up. Barnett has a height and size advantage on Monteiro and can keep him from getting baskets inside the arc, where Monteiro shoots 52%. We want Monteiro taking his shots outside the arc, where he is only shooting 30.9%. If Barnett can get through Monteiro en route to the rim early he will find himself with space on the perimeter needed for him to heat up later in the game. Joining Monteiro in the frontcourt is Andre Marhold, a Charlotte native and North Meck Alum. Marhold, a 6-7 and 205 lb. F-C, plays 22 minutes a game averaging 5.3 PPG and 4.3 RPG. After getting abused by Andrew Nicholson this past Saturday, a match-up against Marhold should have Chris Braswell foaming at the mouth. This team can be had inside, getting an efficient and proficient night out of Braswell will be key to a Niner victory.

At the top of the key will be a match-up between two of the best pick-pockets in Division I, Pierria Henry’s 2.64 steals a game is fifth in the NCAA while TJ McConnell gets 2.82 steals a game and sits in third nationally. Henry has a slight advantage in turnovers, as McConnell coughs up the ball 2.7 times per game to Henry’s 2.5. It seems safe to assume both will be over the average in turnovers tomorrow, but if one can deny the other steals that team will have a distinct advantage. The rest of the backcourt consists of Sean Johnson (13.7 PPG) and Eric Evans (8.9 PPG). Duquesne depends on their backcourt heavily, keeping these guys from penetrating the defense and smothered on the perimeter will hinder the Dukes offense useless.

This team has at least three games left to play and the young players need to take in as much experience as they can. A big guard like Terrence Williams can do a lot of damage against a small backcourt such as Duquesne’s. Derrio Green will be leaned on for his Senior leadership down this stretch, if he has it in him to go on a tear of 30 point games like his Sophomore season, the Niners will make some shock waves this week and in the conference tournament.

Last home game of the year Niner Nation, let’s go out winners.

With five games left in the regular season, the Charlotte 49ers arrive at a crossroads in their season. This evening the Niners play at Richmond (13-14, 4-8 A10), who trails Charlotte (12-12, 4-7 A10) by 1/2 a game in the Atlantic 10 Standings for 10th-place. With a three-game home stand against two of the three teams directly ahead of Charlotte in the standings, a road win against the Spiders could vault the Niners into contention for a Top-Eight finish and a home game in the opening round of the Atlantic 10 Tournament.

Charlotte and Richmond began their conference season against each other on January 4th, with Charlotte winning 75-70. Richmond found themselves in a deep hole late but took advantage of our poor free throw shooting to make it a close margin at the buzzer.

In the first game Richmond started hot and built a 32-21lead in the first half, but Charlotte got it going inside and clamped down defensively to tie it half-time. Charlotte dominated scoring in the paint 50-20 to secure the victory. Javarris Barnett scored 22 on 9-11 from the field working an inside job on Richmond. Braswell added 13.

Braswell didn’t have much resistance from Dayton on Wednesday and he has the potential to be that dominant again against Richmond. If Braswell can find it in himself to start scoring over 20 points a game his senior year will be one hell of a ride. Braswell was only 5-11 from the field in the first game and could sure use the efficiency he had on Wednesday in Dayton or like against UMass.

For Richmond, the points come from the back court as they are led in scoring by three guards; Darien Brothers scores 13.7 PPG, Kendall Anthony, a freshman, scores 13.3 PPG and Cedric Lindsay brings 11.5 PPG. Those three players combined for 51 of Richmond’s 70 points in the first meeting of the season. None of them shoot the ball better then 42% from the field but all shoot better then 35% from behind the arc, led by Anthony’s 43.2%. Anthony and Deuce Briscoe match-up like a dream, it’s only a matter of which one (or both) gets hot.

Richmond’s fourth leading scorer is forward Derrick Williams, at 11.1 points a game. If Williams gets 11 today he will be averaging 5.5 PPG against Charlotte as the Niners held him scoreless in the first meeting.

DeMario Mayfield is expected to return to the line-up following his run-in with the Five-Oh on Tuesday, for our sake let’s hope he turns around the life off the court and keeps getting better on the court. He scored 13.4 PPG in his last five games and 9.4 RPG with three double-doubles along the way. If he returns in that form the Niners have to be feeling good, he was held scoreless in the first game.

A fifth win should put Charlotte completely out of the danger zone of finishing worse than 12th as Fordham (2-9) nor Rhode Island (2-10) have a shot at more than one victory (when they play each other), let alone three. If Charlotte can get the interior game working for them on offense and defense they will find themselves in a position to win this game. If Charlotte can also generate some scoring from the perimeter, the Niners shot 1/6 from three-point range in the first game, they will more than likely walk away with their third road win of the Atlantic 10 season.

Predictions:

J Felt: Spurred on by the GTG crew’s attendance, the Niners get another road win. Charlotte 73, Richmond 67.
2k: Niners do not disappoint for my birthday present. Charlotte 67, Richmond 63.
McFly: Charlotte stays undefeated when I am present. Charlotte 72, Richmond 69
Geep: Niners lose 77-67 because C-Pip is attending Hooner’s plate party at The Flying Saucer and can’t make it to the game.
NLP: Niners give Alpha Duster a birthday present, win 69-63.
C-Pip: Charlotte avenges all those sweeps by Richmond with a 75-65 win.

Tonight, the Charlotte Forty-Niners (10-10 overall, 2-5 A-10) try to get on the right track by traveling to Philadelphia for a game versus the La Salle Explorers (16-6 overall, 5-2 A-10).  Some Niner fans may remember the Explorers from two years ago, when the now departed An’Juan Wilderness hit a crazy runner to win the game.  Then some of the fans may remember La Salle from when Shamari Spears attempted to go all “Incredible Hulk” against their coaching staff, players, and fans (good thing there were only 37 in attendance) during the same game.  Then the Niner fans who are historical buffs will likely be confused by the fact that the university is named for a Catholic Saint dedicated to education, where as their nickname comes from a French explorer who never did anything for the city of Philadelphia.  However, that French explorer, during an expedition had a small fort built called Fort Prudhomme (waits for the readers to Google, I’ll wait).  Niner fans should loathe this French fort as it is now known as present day Memphis, Tennessee.  With such little rivalry in the Atlantic Ten for Charlotte fans this is what we are left to in order to extrapolate hate towards a program we have no qualms with.  Therefore, La Salle created the Memphis Tigers.

Back to basketball…

The Explorers have been an enigma the past few seasons.  When they are picked to fair well, they seem to hit just low of expectations, and when picked to not be much of a contender, they fair much better.  This season the Explorers were picked to finish in the middle of the pack in the Atlantic Ten, and of course in atypical La Salle fashion, they are tied for first in the conference.  How do they do it?  They shoot lights out.  Six players have shot three pointers for La Salle, with the worst one of the bunch shooting 33% from the three-point line.  To put that in to the context of Norm (one “M”), that would make La Salle’s Earl Pettis the fourth best shooter on Charlotte, and considering two of those players (Pierria’ Henry and Chris Braswell) have combined for 61 attempts, that would make Pettis the second greatest threat for Charlotte.  Four explorers shoot higher then 40%, with Ramon Galloway stroking an absurd 48% of his deep balls, all while averaging a team high 15.5 PPG.  So if you have not caught on, La Salle is going to spread out the perimeter and look for open shots.  In turn, good shooters open up multiple driving lanes, which could lead to easy buckets for the Explorers.

As for Charlotte, they will need a stellar defensive plan, and it would not hurt to get Pierria’ Henry back into the fold for this game.  The perimeter players will need to hound La Salle’s shooters off the three-point line, force them into contested jumpers, or into help situations to create turnovers.  If the Niners just expect to chase La Salle’s shooters around screens it is going to be a long night.

Offensively, Charlotte needs more balance (I know, we specialize in rocket science here at GTG).  La Salle is not known for their big men this season, so Chris Braswell should touch the ball on the block nearly every time down the court.  If and when help comes, other players need to step up and hit jump shots.  Javarris Barnett is not going off for 20+ points every night, so others need to help create balance so defenses cannot key in on these two.

Keys To The Game:

• Pressure La Salle’s shooters.  Percentages do not lie, and these guys will make you pay for leaving them open.  A tight man-to-man is likely the best medicine defensively against this team, because a zone would be like Dr. Kevorkian, or Dr. Conrad Murray, whichever pop-culture reference works for you.
• Rebound the ball.  If the Niners can pressure their shooters, there will be rebounds to get, and La Salle is not an overly good rebounding team (Charlotte 36.4 RPG, La Salle 34.0 RPG).  Charlotte needs to win this battle.
• Take the ball to the hole strong and convert lay-ups.  La Salle does not have an intimidating post presence like St. Joseph’s.  Chris Braswell will have the highest blocks per game average on the court tonight and he might have a 7” vertical.

Predictions:

McFly:  Niners continue their slide, despite a competitive performance.  La Salle 73, Charlotte 68.

J-Felt: JB breaks the thirty point barrier and the Explorers get lost. Niners 73, LaSalle 67.

C-Pip: Charlotte explores how it feels to win, Niners 66-La Salle 64

The Geep:  We’ll probably lose.

2k: Niners falter in a close game on the road. Explorers 74, Niners 69

NLP: Niners sneak the Easy Button on the plane and win comfortably. Charlotte 83 – La Salle 52

Following what happened Wednesday night, the 49ers had the challenge of attempting to rebound against the Atlantic 10′s flagship program, Xavier. Javarris Barnett had a career night, but it wasn’t enough as Charlotte (10-10, 2-5) came up short to Xavier (14-7, 5-3) and lost, 74-70.

Barnett got the game started with a three-pointer from the top of the key, but Charlotte’s next four shots were all missed threes. Xavier did not get off to a great start and some attempts from inside the paint earlier might have made a difference later. After a few minutes of back-and-forth scoring, the Musketeers were able to put some distance between themselves and Charlotte. Xavier found themselves up 30-20 with 3:44 remaining in the first-half. Charlotte then went on a 13-7 run, aided by three-point field goals from Barnett, DeMario Mayfield and Derrio Green. Two free throws from Terrence Williams got Charlotte within four at the break, trailing Xavier 33-37.

Charlotte came out of the break aggressive, and chipped away at Xavier’s lead slowly but surely. Barnett’s third three-pointer got Charlotte within one, 47-46, with 14:17 left in the contest. Minutes later he would tie the score on his fifth three-pointer, the score knotted at 52 all. Xavier answered as we all expected a team like Xavier to do. A three-pointer from Brad Redford broke the tie and began a 19-10 run by the Musketeers that would put Xavier on top 71-62 with 2:34 remaining.

With Xavier having just scored seven straight, the 49ers found the strength to make one last run, just like against Saint Louis two weeks earlier. Having gotten within three points on a Chris Braswell jumper, Xavier was able to burn 33 seconds off the clock before Tu Holloway bricked an attempted dagger. DeMario Mayfield was sent to the line with 12.8 seconds and after having made the first, the second rolled out of bounds, and in possession of Xavier. Holloway then got himself two daggers in the form of free throws getting the score to its final margin.

Beating Xavier is and always will be a a tough task, but after the disaster that happened against Temple the performance of the Niners was respectable. Had Pierria Henry been healthy he could have very well been the difference in the outcome. Henry not only brings his own defensive spark to the court, but the team reflects his intensity on defense. With him in the game, Redford doesn’t find himself wide open as easily as he did.

Barnett scored 27 points on 9-15 shooting, including a near perfect 7-8 from behind the arc. Without Barnett, the rest of the team shot 31%, we can’t expect Barnett to catch fire like that every night.  The guys on the court have to figure out how to make their shots. DeMario Mayfield got another double-double, 13 points and 10 rebounds. He made six of his eight free throw attempts and his improvement in this aspect of the game is appreciated. Braswell scored 12 points on 4/7 shooting, but the Niners will continue to lose games if he is only getting seven shots a game.

Since joining the Atlantic 10, the Niners have managed to beat Xavier twice. Both of those victories occurred in Halton and took place during losing seasons. Needless to say, it’s been strange. Beating Xavier seems to be an indication that we suck, and since we have done just that the past two games there’s a sense of confidence in the fan base going into this contest.

The bad news is that Henry is still sidelined with a sprained MCL (not his finger, “obviously”) and there appears to be some chemistry issues within the team. Maybe the newcomers have yet to mesh with the elder Hit Squad. Maybe there’s favoritism from the coaching staff for “their guys.” Maybe Judy Rose has stopped giving fashion tips to the seniors. Who knows? Either way, the team is going to need to come together this weekend or else it will be another embarrassment. We can count on Chris Braswell to bring his game to the court, but will Derrio and Deuce step up in Henry’s absence?

There is some good news. Xavier is beatable. Ever since The Brawl the Musketeers just haven’t had the same swagger they had to start out the season. A top ten team with Final Four potential has become a mid-pack Atlantic 10 squad and just suffered demoralizing losses at Dayton and to Saint Louis at home. For whatever reason, they seem as broken as we do.

To get some insight, GTG reached out to Dana and Victory contributor golfitup (@muskieblog). He provided the information you need to know about Xavier that we were too lazy to look up.

GreenTintedGlasses: Xavier was tabbed early on as not only one of the favorites in the conference, but also a potential Final Four team. Now things are obviously not going as well. Would you agree that the Cincy game was the turning point? What has changed with this team since the brawl?

Golf: Clearly, everything points to the “brawl” with UC. But I don’t think the turning point was the fight or subsequent suspensions that followed. The vilification the players faced from everyone in the media who has a keyboard and/or a microphone for referring to themselves as “gangstas” has had a far more lasting impact on the mental make-up of this team. For better or worse, that’s how this team identified themselves. And frankly, I could have cared less. We live in a country where athletes are continually compared to “warriors” and everyone goes “to battle” every time they take the court/field. Hell, against Dayton last Saturday the play by play guy referred to Mark Lyons as an “assassin,” and Tu Holloway had been called a “killer” earlier in the year. I know I’m looking through this with Xavier colored glasses, but what the hell? I just don’t see the difference. And the team has clearly not been able to shake it. The defense has been especially alarming. If Charlotte can run a competent offense with lots of good screens they should see a lot of open looks Saturday night.

GTG: Tu Holloway is one of the best guards in the country and a threat to takeover the game at any time, what do you think makes him such a special player? Are you concerned that he has a tendency to shoot Xavier OUT of games at time as well?

Golf: What makes Tu special is his clutch play late in games. He hit multiple big time three pointers in come from behind wins against Vanderbilt and Purdue earlier this season. Last season, he had to take a lot of the shots because of an extreme lack of depth in the back court and if the shots weren’t falling (like last year at Halton), then our chances of winning reduced significantly. This year he has taken a measured approach to scoring, taking it to opponents only when the opportunity presents itself or late in games when points are needed.

GTG: Xavier has seen good play from some new faces this year, who has really stood out?

Golf: Dezmine Wells has jump out of the gym athleticism. Once he refines his all-around game he could become one of the better players in the league down the line. Dee Davis is a pest defensively, but needs to improve his offensive game. The new front court additions, Andre Walker and Travis Taylor, have their moments but all too often have not shown the requisite toughness needed to be good consistent performers in the low post on both ends of the floor.

GTG: Sucker punches aside, what’s the best way for opponents to control the paint against big Kenny Frease?

Golf: Well, no one in the fan base is quite sure what to make of Kenny Frease this year. He’s been rather disappointing which is unfortunate. Last season was clearly his best in a Xavier uniform. But this year he tends to panic when faced with pressure. If I’m Alan Major I double Kenny right away each time he catches the ball in the low post until he consistently proves he can make the right play under pressure.

GTG: How do you see the Atlantic 10 shaking out in the end? Will Xavier be standing at the top mocking all the pretenders again? Biggest surprise?

Golf: What a mess this conference is right now. At 2-4 you all are only 2 games back of first at the moment. Dayton look like legit contenders against us Saturday, and then lost at St. Joe’s by 14 Wednesday night so who the hell knows what will happen. For Xavier, if things don’t improve on the defensive end in a hurry our run at a 6th straight regular season title will end sooner rather than later. At this point, almost nothing will surprise me.

Big thanks to golfitup and Dana and Victory. For those looking for pregame fun, the tailgate starts around 3 PM. Our predictions for the game are below. Leave yours in the comments.

J Felt: Stranger things have happened. Charlotte 71, Xavier 65.
NLP: Bet the house on Green. Niners 49, Xavier 45.
Chaz: Niners aren’t that good this year… which means Xavier is TOAST in Halton Arena. Charlotte 65, Xavier 60.
Mandill “Don’t Think For Yourself” Geep: Very well said Chaz, I agree Niners 68, Muskies 63.
2k: Niners play harder than they did vs Temple, same outcome. XU 80, Charlotte 62.
McFly: Niners may as well wear an X on their jerseys because the Muskies are going to put a shovel in them, they’re done.  X 74, Charlotte 55.

On Saturday, the Charlotte 49ers (8-5, 1-0 A-10) take a road trip North to The City of Brotherly Hate, Philadelphia to do battle with St. Joseph’s (11-4, 1-0 A-10).  Just kidding, they will be playing in Chestnut Hill, PA, which is probably a good thing in case Braswell decided to wear his Ovechkin jersey to Geno’s for a cheese steak.  Regardless of location, hopefully the game ends in one manner… with that annoying mascot, which flaps its wings incessantly, going home crying into its down with a loss.  I’m not an “avian-hater” by any means, but I go to zoos and nature preserves plenty, and I have never came across a hawk that just keeps flapping its wings.  Most are generally quite still.

Back to the preview at hand. St. Joe’s is playing the first part of this season much like they finished last season: winning.  After sucking out loud for much of last season, the Hawks closed their season with a mini-surge in the Atlantic 10 tournament, and continued that momentum into this season (with wins over Villanova and Creighton).  Offensively, St. Joe’s shoots a very good percentage as a team (48.7% FG, 39.7% 3FG), and are led by Carl Jones, a “non-SIZE KING-esque” 5’11″ junior guard.  Jones averages just over 18 PPG and shoots a fairly good percentage at 44% FG and 37% 3FG.  However, Jones also sports a fashionable .93 to 1 A/TO ratio, so he can be had on the defensive end and isn’t much of a distributor.  The Hawks have three other players who average double figures in scoring, those players being guard Langston Galloway (16.1 PPG), forward C. J. Aiken (11.8 PPG), and forward Ronald Roberts Jr. (10.3 PPG).  Out of that bunch, Galloway is going to be the main guy to keep tabs on.  The 6’1″ guard has hit on 51.2% of his three pointers on the season, which just seems to scream out “Big game” versus a program that notoriously likes to have guys absolutely go off on them from deep.

Defensively, the Hawks are statistically similar to Charlotte in many ways.  Both squads are good at keeping their opponent around the 66 to 67 point mark and keeping the opponent below 40% shooting.  Charlotte is a better team at turning opponents over, but St. Joe’s, largely because of C.J. Aiken, more than make up for that in the blocked shots category.  Niner fans can easily remember back to New Year’s Eve when we were the guests of honor at a block party thrown for us on Beale Street by Memphis; well this St. Joe’s squad could do similar damage.  While not overly large in stature, Aiken (6’9″, 190 lbs) makes up for it in length and timing, blocking 4.5 shots per game.  The key for Braswell and others will be to get him off his feet with pump fakes (no easy task), into foul trouble (not likely on his home court), or for Braswell to use his weight advantage to move him off his ground.  However the team decides to do it, they need to neutralize Aiken’s post presence on the defensive end.

Keys to the Game:

• Don’t crap the bed out of the gate.  The Niners, lately, have been having a rough go of it to start games.  Being on the road, against a good defensive team is not the time to continue this trend.
• Pressure St. Joe’s guards.  While it may be easier said then done, the Hawks starting backcourt accounts for 47% of their scoring.  The Niners need to make other players beat them, although we tend to excel at that a little too much.
• Neutralize C.J. Aiken’s defensive presence.  Defensively, I do not know if they will let him float out on Braswell when he goes out to the elbow, but if Aiken doesn’t Braswell needs to make him pay for it.  Also, a bevy of pump fakes and strong takes will be necessary.

After being led to victory by Javarris Barnett on Monday the Charlotte 49ers (7-2) get back to action tomorrow night when the Miami Hurricanes (6-4) make their fourth trip to Halton Arena (they are 0-3), and their first since the 2002-03 season. Miami is going through a transition year as Frank Haith vacated the head coaching position to take over at Missouri after Mike Anderson bolted from the Tigers to Arkansas. Jim Larranaga answered the call and left George Mason for “The U”. The Niners might remember Larranaga as he orchestrated the most thorough dismantling of the Niners last season when Charlotte squared off with George Mason in the opening round of the Charleston Classic.

The Hurricanes started 4-0 this season before dropping four of five. Miami was able to play center Reggie Johnson for the first time on Saturday against Florida Atlantic after he underwent knee surgery in June. Thursday will mark the return of DeQuan Jones as he was allegedly implicated in accepting $10,000 to play at Miami in the scandal that embroiled Miami over the summer. Jones’ lawyer was able to get him eligible as the NCAA has yet to gather enough evidence to cite any violations. Although, nothing quite says “I didn’t accept $10,000″ like HIRING a lawyer to regain your eligibility.

Johnson put up a 15 points (6/8 FG) and pulled down nine rebounds while rejecting five shots in his debut on Saturday. At 6’10″ and 284 lbs, it’s not easy getting up the court on bum a knee so Chris Braswell can find himself a lot of room inside if he can beat Johnson and the ball down the court on offense. Braswell was the central point of Coppin State’s defense, drawing double or triple teams with every touch, but Coach Larranaga might entrust the defense of Braswell solely to Johnson.  If Braswell’s can use his high-post game and quickness to get Johnson out of his way then his numbers will bounce back up from the Coppin State game. Braswell might need the help from another big body defending Johnson to keep him out of foul trouble.

Miami’s backcourt consists of Malcolm Grant and Durand Scott who both score in the double-figures at 15.1 PPG and 12.5 PPG, respectively. Grant is the ball hog of the two, only making 1.7 APG and having taken 2.8 more shots a game than anyone else on the team. His 3-PT FG% equals his overall FG% at 38.4%, which can lead us to assume he gets reckless with his shots when he drives inside the paint. If Pierria Henry has his number, he could very well see both percentages drop. Scott is the facilitator of the two averaging 3.5 assists per game, but he is second on the team in shots attempted, at 2.9 more than the rest of the pack.

Jones is a 6’7″ PF who shot 53% last season, scoring 5.7PPG and probably expecting a larger role this season. The 6’11″  Kenny Kadji will be a force that may require the rare use of Ilijia Ivankovic as Kadji scores 8.7 PPG shooting 50.8% and pulls in 4.5 RPG. Kadji is an inside player, but has stepped behind the 3-point line to shoot eight times this season, sinking six of them. Trey McKinney Jones (long enough name, bro?), Garrius Adams, and Shane Larkin are all significant contributors for Miami, each averaging 7-8 points per game. McKinney Jones (or just Jones) and Adams are on the wing while Larkin comes off the bench behind Grant and Scott.

Miami scores 69.8 a game while allowing 68.0 from their opponents (it’s nice not having to recalculate that stat to exclude non-DI games), compared to 70.4-64.1 for Charlotte. The Hurricanes are also 0-3 on the road to the likes of Ole Miss, Purdue and West Virginia losing by an average margin of 8.3 points in those contests. On Saturday, the Florida Atlantic Owls (4-7) took Miami to two overtimes in Sunrise, FL. The Owls got 20 points from 5’6″ guard Raymond Taylor. This is favorable for Deuce Briscoe, who will look to score coming off the bench. If Briscoe can cement Miami’s trend of allowing small guards to slash them up, the Niners will keep themselves from running into long scoring droughts.

Miami’s best win to date is at home to UMass 83-75 in a game whose final score was aided by free throws. Should Charlotte play with the  attitude it had against Davidson in the second-half the Hurricanes will be going home for Christmas with a very, very sour taste in their mouth. This is a MUST win for Charlotte who need to have momentum on their side before going to Arkansas and Memphis.

Alan Major’s first season as Head Coach of the Charlotte 49ers was certainly an adventure.  Early injuries to KJ Sherrill and Charles Dewhurst, poor chemistry with Shamari Spears and the eventual loss of Phil Jones to grades all contributed to an abysmal 10-20 season.  However, the Niners did manage dramatic victories against Tennessee and later, Xavier.

That said, tonight’s 84-61 victory over Davidson was in our opinion Alan Major’s first signature victory.  It was a rivalry game against a solid albeit not spectacular Wildcat team in which the Niners won by playing up to their talent level and ability, not playing down to the other team’s level.  This was a game many Niner fans were fearing, Vegas and the simulators expecting the Niners to lose and a game Davidson was confident they would win.

In the early going, neither team looked interested in winning.  Charlotte was able to force Davidson into turnovers; however, poor shots and turnovers of their own saw Charlotte up only 6-2 following a DeMario Mayfield layup with the game 5 minutes old.

The remainer of the half featured brief breakouts by the Niners followed by Davidson closing the gap again.  A Nik Cochran 3-pointer late in the half would give Davidson a 31-30 lead; however the feeling was one that the Niners should be leading the game by a comfortable margin.

Coming out of the halftime break, the Niners ratcheted up the defensive intensity.  Those openings JP Kuhlman found in the first half were closing, as the Niners realized he could not create his own shot effectively.  De’Mon Brooks continued to struggle with fouls (a key strategic victory for Charlotte) and Jake Cohen was largely ineffective.  A critical juncture came roughly five minutes into the 2nd half with the Niners holding a precarious 39-34 lead.  Javarris Barnett (15 points, 6 rebounds) drilled a 3 pointer to extend the lead to 8 points.  A 3 pointer by Davidson’s Chris Czklsj;alekarusoiapfjlk (we’re Charlotte, we can’t speel) the other way was met immediately by another Javarris Barnett long-ball, keeping the lead at 8 points.  Two more JB triples and one by Luka Voncina capped a terrific display of shooting for the Niners as they withstood any semblance of a Davidson run.

From there, Chris Braswell took over, finishing regularly at the rim with a dazzling array of layups following deftly-maneuvered drives around Davidson post players.  Braswell finished the game with yet another double-double: 19 points and 10 rebounds.  Davidson appeared to cave in the latter stages, something few Niner teams have been able to induce on the opposition over the last half decade.  To really illustrate how bad the rout was, Charlotte shot 69% from the field in the 2nd half, missing just two shots inside the arc and 50% from long range.

Impressive outings were also had by the freshman trio of Pierria’ Henry (10 points on 3-6 shooting, 2 steals), E Victor Nickerson (10 points on 3-4 shooting) and Terrence Williams (5 points including some nice drives to the rim).  Though Henry was only credited with 2 steals, he wrecked havoc on the Davidson backcourt and knocked loose a lot of balls that wound up being credited to other Niners (Derrio Green had 6 steals).

One of the bonus silver linings from the game was that the Niners were able to win despite quiet scoring nights from Derrio Green and Deuce Briscoe.  That’s not to say they played poorly… they didn’t, it was merely a case where Henry, Nickerson and Williams were able to provide some more scoring than usual as well as Javarris Barnett providing the necessary outside marksmanship.  These developments are another indicator that the Freshman are beginning to improve, develop and better integrate with the rest of the lineup.  Though bumps in the road may still happen, things are certainly looking up for the Charlotte 49ers.

It’s been a long wait. Four seasons ago Davidson fought all the way to the Elite Eight, their best team in decades. That was a really, really good team, but that team wasn’t good enough to beat the Charlotte 49ers in Halton Arena. Charlotte had a guy on its roster named Leemire Goldwire who went head to head with current Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, and knocked down nine 3-pointers en route to 34 points and a 75-68 Niners victory. On Saturday night, Charlotte (5-2) will host Davidson (5-2 vs. DI) for the first time since the 2007-08 season. All the players that played in that game are no longer here, most Charlotte students don’t know what it’s like when our rivals come to visit, the ones that do only know what last year’s numbing defeat on the road felt like. Defending Halton Arena against a team more known for being the 2008 Cinderella than as our rival to the new blood will go along way towards turning their blood Niner Green.

Davidson comes into the game averaging 75 ppg against its Division I competition. They are poised, experienced and once again likely to control the Southern Conference this season. The key to beating Davidson starts inside, limiting the production of 6’10″center Jake Cohen and 6’7″ power forward De’Mon Brooks. On Tuesday night Vanderbilt forced these guys to get more of their points away from the rim and found themselves in control until the Wildcats found their 3-point shot late in the game. Last month, the Richmond Spiders had no answer to this combo, nor reserve Clint Mann, and found themselves losers by 13 points. Brooks is the Wildcat’s leading scorer at 17.6 PPG at 53.5 FG%, grabbing 7.3 RPG. He likes to bang around inside, but will step outside the paint on occasion, even shooting a couple 3-pointers a game (but only at 26.7%).

Cohen is a long, mildly athletic, center scoring 13.3 PPG at 46.3 FG%. Strength isn’t the best part of Cohen’s game, but he can get up and down the court quickly which might take the breath out of Chris Braswell. Cohen also likes to step outside the paint to shoot and puts up four 3-pointers a game, making them at a rate of 27.3%. These two guys can be scored on, but Brooks might be too big for Javarris Barnett to guard in the post, expect KJ Sherrill to get some minutes in this game to contain Brooks. Getting these two guys in foul trouble early will be very beneficial to us, and Chris Braswell needs to be fed the ball early and often.

Davidson’s backcourt consists of some guys that look a lot like Michael Gerrity. JP Kuhlman(6’4″) and Nik Cochran(6’3″) run the Wildcat back court with Kuhlman scoring 13.6 PPG at 43.6 FG%. Cochran is Davidson’s greatest 3-point threat with a conversion rate of 36.4% from behind the arc, contributing to his 10 PPG, Davidson’s only other deep threat is 6’7″ Chris Czerapowics at 35.7%. These guys don’t make a lot of mistakes with the exception of falling head-over-heels for the 3-ball when they shouldn’t, which every college team has to deal with.

Defensively the backcourt is the weakness of Davidson. They lack quickness and play a zone to protect from penetration. The backcourt was scorched by Richmond’s combo of Cecrick Lindsay and freshman Kendall Anthony (very similar player to Deuce Briscoe, take note) for 17 points each. Vanderbilt’s John Jenkins and Jeffrey Taylor combined for 52 of the Commodore’s 87 points Wednesday night. If Briscoe can attack like he did against (sigh) ETSU and East Carolina, he can do a lot to secure a 49ers victory. Mayfield will also need to beat his defender off the dribble forcing the inside defense to help, E. Victor Nickerson has the chance for a breakout game if he can take advantage of Davidson’s perimeter.

Charlotte will have to keep Davidson from finding their shot outside the arc, as well as limiting production inside by their big men. As it has always been since we lost DiJuan Harris, limiting the turnovers will be very important. This experienced and intelligent Davidson squad won’t match our mistakes like Radford or Central Michigan if we decide to get careless. Pierria Henry can use his athleticism and courage to force some Davidson mistakes (his steal rate is astonishing for a freshman).

This will be an emotionally charged game on both sides, but not as much as used to be as the two-season break may have turned down the flames some, especially for players who had never participated in a Hornets Nest Game until last season. The Niners have been making gains all season, playing their best game last week at East Carolina. Tuesday was a good defensive effort but we were anemic offensively. If Charlotte continues its progression against Davidson on Saturday, a 7-0 mark inside of Halton Arena and a 27-11 record overall against the Wildcats will be a lock.