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Andrien White skies for the jam. Photo by Chris Crews.
Another second-half surge propelled Charlotte to a victory over UTEP, defeating the Miners 88-78 in their final home game.
Braxton Ogbueze led all scorers with 24 points, five rebounds and four assists. Despite suffering from cramps, Andrien White broke the single-season record for made threes by a freshman, finishing with 22 points in 25 minutes. Joseph Uchebo notched his 15th double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Curran Scott rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 points.
“Early on, we were struggling. We just weren’t a very good team defensively in the first half,” coach Mark Price said. “That second half was one of the better defensive halves of the season.”
Scott opened the game by scoring the first four points for Charlotte. It was a tight game throughout first half as there were four tied scores in the first ten minutes. With Charlotte down 30-29, the Miners reeled off two straight buckets off of 49er turnovers. UTEP maintained a three-possession lead into halftime, up 47-40 on the 49ers
Charlotte cut the UTEP lead down to three after a pair of free throws from White and a Jon Davis jumper. As the 49ers gained momentum, the Miners answered down the stretch, increasing their lead to 10, five minutes into the second half. But a White three sparked a 9-0 run to get the 49ers back into the game, now down 61-60. After both teams traded buckets, Scott knocked down his second three to tie the game at 63. As the clock past approached the ten-minute mark, Ogbueze knocked down a three to give Charlotte their first lead.
As the clock went past the ten-minute mark, Ogbueze knocked down a three to give Charlotte their first lead since the first half. The 49ers didn’t surrender the lead again. Anthony Vanhook closed the game after knocking down two free throws to give Charlotte the ten point victory.
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Braxton Ogbueze and Joseph Uchebo celebrate. Photo by Chris Crews.
“I remember a while ago, I mentioned knocking the door down,” Ogbueze said. “Tonight was an example of us finally knocking the door down.”
Charlotte forced 12 turnovers on the night, including eight in the second half. In turn, the 49ers generated 15 points off turnovers. Charlotte carried over their hot shooting from their double-overtime victory Thursday night, knocking down 44 percent of their threes and 90 percent from the free throw line.
Charlotte will close the regular season in Texas, taking on Rice. Tip is scheduled for 8 p.m.
