TicketsBearcats Drop Second Straight
UC falls in Charlotte, 91-90
Contact: Brian Teter
2/5/2005
James White had 18 points and six assists at Charlotte. |
CHARLOTTE, N.C.---In the highest scoring game in series history, Charlotte outlasted No. 17 Cincinnati 91-90 in Conference USA basketball action on Saturday afternoon at Halton Arena.
The Bearcats (17-5, 6-3 C-USA) had a shot at the win, but Armein Kirkland?s go-ahead jumper rattled off the back iron to give the 49ers (15-4, 6-2 C-USA) the victory. UC set up its last second attempt when Jason Maxiell rebounded a missed lay-up by Mitchell Baldwin with 22 seconds remaining, but the Bearcats couldn?t convert on the opportunity.
For the 12th time this season, Cincinnati placed at least four players in double figure scoring, led today by Eric Hicks? 20 points. James White had a solid all-around day for UC, scoring 18 points, while grabbing five rebounds and handing out six assists. Maxiell added 17 points and a team-high eight rebounds, while Nick Williams tacked on 15 points and Jihad Muhammad had 10.
Charlotte got an awesome long-range performance from Brendan Plavich, who buried 8 of 17 shots from behind the arc to finish with a game-high 26 points. Eddie Basden tacked on 20 points, while a foul-plagued Curtis Withers had 15. E.J. Drayton and Baldwin each added 10 for the 49ers.
Offense was the name of the game from the outset as the two teams raced to a 51-47 halftime score, with the Bearcats holding the four-point edge. Charlotte led on two separate occasions early on, but saw a 7-0 Bearcat run push the visitors ahead 12-8.
Charlotte came back to knot the score at 25 when Drayton drained a triple, but Williams answered with a three of his own to send UC into the under-12 minute media timeout with a 28-25 lead. The 53 combined points in the first eight minutes of play had already exceeded the entire first half output of the first match-up between the squads on Jan. 19 when Charlotte held a 28-24 lead at intermission.
The Bearcats had opened a five-point cushion, when Charlotte used a 12-4 run to take a three-point lead of its own. Five different 49ers scored during the spurt, including Plavich who buried his third trey of the first half. Cincinnati came right back, however, as a three and a lay-up by Williams highlighted a 10-0 run that saw the Bearcats open the largest lead of the first half at 46-39 with 2:52 still to play.
Cincinnati wouldn?t be in control for long, as Williams? three would be the team?s last field goal for almost three minutes. Meanwhile, Plavich hit another three and Basden buried four straight free throws to tie the score at 46. After a Charlotte free throw, Kirkland hit an off-balance three at the first half buzzer to send UC into the locker room with a four-point lead.
The first half stats saw the Bearcats on fire as they shot .541 from the floor and .500 from three-point range. Charlotte shot .405 in the first 20 minutes and was at .438 from long range. The first half rebounding battle went to Charlotte, 22-20. Hicks led the Bearcats with 13 in the first half, while Williams was already at 10. Plavich had 12 first half points to pace the 49ers.
The second half was a seesaw battle right to the final horn, as the team?s traded the lead throughout. UC went up by five 2:30 into the frame, but saw Charlotte roar into a 66-61 lead on the strength of a 14-4 run. Basden was the leader of this 49er charge, accounting for six of the 14 points.
The Bearcats continued to trail until nearly seven minutes were left on the clock, when Maxiell converted three-point plays on two consecutive trips down the floor. With 7:07 left, the scoreboard showed UC with a 75-74 advantage. The battle continued to ensue until Plavich hit his eighth and final three of the afternoon to put Charlotte up 85-83 with 4:34 to go.
Despite not making another field goal for the balance of the game, Charlotte converted six of seven free throws in the last four minutes to close out the win. Down six, the Bearcats got three?s from Kirkland and White that knotted the score at 89. After Charlotte?s Withers drained two free throws, Hicks split a pair with 52 seconds left. That set the stage for Baldwin?s missed lay-up and Kirkland?s potential game-winning shot.
Charlotte was victorious, despite being outshot .415 to .485. The 49ers won the battle of the boards 43-34, after losing the battle by 19 in the team?s first match-up this season. Basden added to his excellent all-around game with game-highs of 11 rebounds and seven assists, while his four steals give him a share of the C-USA career record in that category.
UC will be out to snap its two-game losing streak when they return home on Thursday for the annual Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout with Xavier. Tip-off from Fifth Third Arena is set for 9 p.m. in a game that will be broadcast live on ESPN2.