- Jhivvan Jackson has 25 points, Keaton Wallace 27.
- UTSA held to 8 of 31 from 3-point range.
- Luka Barisic charts sixth double-figure scoring effort of season.
- UTSA hosts Marshall, Western Kentucky next week at The Convo.
CHARLOTTE -- Behind a hot-shooting night and a stingy defense, the Charlotte 49ers posted a 91-84 win over UTSA men's basketball, on Saturday evening at Halton Arena.
UTSA (11-14, 5-7 Conference USA) couldn't overcome a blistering hot night from the 49ers and consistent foul trouble as Charlotte (14-9, 8-4 C-USA) outlasted the Roadrunners in the finale of a two-game road swing on the East Coast for the Roadrunners.
The Roadrunners were handcuffed offensively throughout the game as the 49ers held UTSA to a 8 of 31 mark, including 5 of 17 in the second half – from 3-point range in the game.
Junior guard Jhivvan Jackson totaled 25 points with a team-leading eight rebounds. He missed his first eight 3-point efforts before drilling one off the dribble late in the game, finishing 1 of 11 from range. Jackson was 6 of 7 from inside the arc and finished 10 of 11 from the charity stripe.
Keaton Wallace had a team-leading 27 points with two rebounds to lead the Roadrunners, going 9 of 9 from the free-throw line. Playing in foul trouble, Wallace was limited to 27 minutes.
Junior forward Luka Barisic earned his sixth double-figure scoring game of the year, charting 14 points and three rebounds.
Senior forward Byron Frohnen made his program-record 125th consecutive start and grabbed five boards.
Charlotte got stellar outings from junior Jordan Shepherd – a transfer from Oklahoma who came into the game averaging 13.8 points per game – and sophomore Malik Martin, who averaged 8.8 points entering the game, in the win. Jahmir Young (16) and Drew Edwards (13) each reached double figures.
Shepherd had 26 points, including a 5 of 7 showing from 3-point range, after entering the game shooting 26.1 percent from distance with just 12 made triples. Martin added 19 points and Charlotte's 91 points marked a season-high.
The 49ers shot 51.9 percent (27 of 52) from the field, holding UTSA to 39.7 percent (25-63). Charlotte was 11 of 25 from distance and made 26 of its 38 free throws. Charlotte outrebounded UTSA, 37-33 and had 28 points in the paint. Of Charlotte's 27 made buckets, 20 came on assists.
UTSA will return to action on Thursday, playing host to Marshall at 8 p.m. at the Convocation Center. The game will be televised live on the CBS Sports Network. Fans can also hear the game live on the Roadrunners Sports Network, with Andy Everett – the Voice of the Roadrunners – calling the action live on Ticket 760 AM and goUTSA.com.
After the first media timeout saw Charlotte own a 7-6 lead, the 49ers supported off on a 7-0 run to take a 14-6 lead, with the advantage growing to 18-9 before UTSA ripped off a 7-0 run, getting four points from Jackson and a triple from Erik Czumbel to cut the lead to two with 10:35 left in the first.
After a Luka Barisic triple evened the game at 19, Charlotte spurted off on a 6-0 run to take a 25-19 lead and force a timeout. Charlotte stretched its lead to seven. Before a quick 5-0 run from Wallace, featuring a corner trey, to cut the lead to 30-28.
The lead grew to nine before UTSA scored six of the final eight to end the half, including a basket from Adrian Rodriguez in transition and four points from Barisic. Charlotte shot 53.6 percent from the field in the first, with UTSA shooting just 38.7 percent and trailing 19-18 in rebounds.
Jackson opened the scoring in the second with a midrange jumper and the teams traded buckets until the first media timeout, which saw the 49ers own a 50-43 lead.
The lead grew to 12 after the under 12-minute media timeout. A Barisic post-move bucket cut the lead to 64-58 with eight minutes left.
Wallace's and-1 with just over six minutes left cut the lead to 64-61. UTSA was able to keep it at a one-possession game until a triple from Young forced a UTSA timeout with 4:10 left, trailing by eight.
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