Charlotte trounces Beach, 93-64

Hoops • Sophomore guard Kevin Houston had trouble distributing the ball in Friday's 93-64 loss against No. 28 Charlotte. Yulian Danusastro/Online Forty-Niner

 

By Elysse James
Online Forty-Niner
Opinion Editor

The 49ers were dealt a crushing blow in their season opener against another group of 49ers last Friday as host Charlotte had 14 steals in a sloppy offensive game for The Beach in a 93-64 loss in North Carolina.

Long Beach's only ray of hope was 15 seconds in when Hawkins' layup put them ahead, but Charlotte hit back, scoring the next nine points, then 18 of the next 20.

Charlotte's Mitchell Baldwin brought the score to 40-21 with two free throws as he had 25 points on the night. Charlotte's lead grew to 47-27 by the end of the first half, as the 49ers could never muster up a run to catch the No. 28 team in the nation.

"They played a very effective game," LBSU Head Coach Larry Reynolds said of the Charlotte 49ers. "They got into their transition game early and shot the ball extremely well."

"Obviously, we didn't shoot the ball as well as we had hoped. I feel we're a better shooting team than we showed tonight."

The 49ers shot .314 (22-of-70) from the field, which was no challenge to Charlotte's .600 (18-of-30), including an impressive 11-of-21 from three-point range. The 49ers had 43 rebounds as did Charlotte, but Charlotte grabbed 20 offensive boards, which allowed them plenty of second chances.

Long Beach did a good job from the free throw line shooting .850 (17-of-20). Six 49ers shot in double digits as Louis Darby was the leading scorer for The Beach with 15 points, followed by Anthony Coleman's 12, Cody Pearson's 11 and transfer Shawn Hawkins at 10.

Long Beach forced 21 turnovers to Charlottes 17. Long Beach recorded four steals, but Charlotte's Baldwin alone had four contributing to the team's 14.

The 49ers will return home on Tuesday for a non-conference game against Pepperdine University in their home opener at 7:30 p.m. in The Pyramid.