Niners Stumble in New Year’s Showdown: Unforeseen Turnovers Hand Tulane the Victory

CHARLOTTE – An atypical 17 turnovers from the Charlotte 49ers contributed to their 83-68 defeat to the visiting Tulane on Tuesday, Dec. 31, in the American Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball kickoff.

“The result today is disappointing, obviously,” remarked Charlotte Head Men’s Basketball Coach Aaron Fearne. “[We] simply didn’t perform very well, but credit goes to them [Tulane]. We have managed the ball effectively all year, and today we failed to do so, which truly impacted us.”

The Niners commenced Tuesday averaging the second-lowest turnovers in the country, yet against the Green Wave, Charlotte reached a season-high of 17 turnovers. Tulane exploited this opportunity with a 21-2 margin in points derived from turnovers. A strong start by the Green Wave, which enabled them to achieve an early 18-2 lead at Halton Arena, also posed challenges for the 49ers.

Nik Graves concluded with a team-leading 14 points and four assists, while Dean Reiber recorded nine points and a personal best of nine rebounds.

“We create quite good shot opportunities, but as a team, we just aren’t shooting well enough yet,” stated Coach Fearne. “We need more than just a couple of individuals delivering quality shots.”

HOW IT UNFOLDED
Tulane sank seven of its first 11 shots, including four three-pointers, establishing an early 18-2 leading margin with 13 minutes left in the first half. Charlotte responded with an 11-0 run, featuring the 49ers scoring on four consecutive possessions. To finish the run, Reiber located a cutting Rich Rolf inside for a layup, and on the subsequent possession, Rolf passed out to Reiber for a three-pointer, resulting in the score of 18-13.

With 3:02 left in the first half, the Niners narrowed the gap to 28-25 after having trailed by as much as 16 points during the period. Graves delivered back-to-back assists, finding Thomas for a three-pointer, and then Rosado for a layup.

The Green Wave converted 6-of-15 attempts from long range during the initial half, taking a 34-27 advantage into halftime. 

A lay-in by Graves increased the score to 40-33 as the guard overcame the full-court pressure and finished through contact against the taller Tulane competitor. Nonetheless, turnovers on four of Charlotte’s subsequent five possessions enabled the Green Wave to elevate their lead to 46-33.

Charlotte and Tulane exchanged baskets consistently in the second period. When Robert Braswell IV drained a corner three-pointer to reduce the deficit to 46-36 with 13:42 left in the second period, the Green Wave quickly answered with a trifecta of their own. With 5:34 remaining, another Tulane three made it 64-51. Eleven seconds later, Rolf elevated and converted a three in retaliation. Rolf decreased the Green Wave’s lead to single digits by outmaneuvering his defender along the baseline for a layup, resulting in a 64-56 score with fewer than five minutes remaining.

Charlotte was unable to reduce the margin further as Tulane made sufficient baskets and free throws to manage the game and secure the win.

STAT FACTS
The 49ers, who came into Tuesday rated fourth in the nation for free throw attempts, were granted just four free throws in the first half, concluding the game with 22 total attempts.

Graves has netted double digits in every game this season. He had zero points from two attempts in the first half before ending with 14 points. 

Graves, Braswell, Thomas, Nika Metskhvarishvili, and Giancarlo Rosado played their inaugural game together as a starting five. Graves, Braswell, and Thomas have been starting in all 14 games this season.

Rosado concluded with eight points and eight rebounds. Thomas accounted for nine points and four boards.

From the bench, Rolf matched Reiber with nine points as Charlotte outscored Tulane 22-4 in bench points.

All but four points for Tulane were accrued by their starters, with all five players in the opening lineup achieving double figures.

UP NEXT
The Niners kick off the new year against Rice in Houston, Texas, on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025, in AAC competition.