SAN ANTONIO – The UTSA men's basketball team will return to the Convocation Center for its final home game of the season as it is set to welcome the Charlotte 49ers to the Alamo City. Thursday night's contest is set to tip off at 7 p.m., will be streamed on ESPN+ and will be broadcast on Ticket 760.
The Roadrunners (9-21, 3-16) enter Thursday's game coming off a Saturday breakthrough, scoring a season-high 95 points in a win on the road at FIU. Charlotte (18-11, 9-9 C-USA) has won five of its last six, including four straight games. The 49ers are currently the fifth-ranked team in Conference USA.
Leading the Roadrunners
UTSA is led on offense by a quartet of double-digit scorers. Leading the way is JUCO transfer Japhet Medor who churns out a team-high 13.1 points per game. Medor not only leads the team in scoring but also in assists (100) and steals (42). Medor has six 20+ point outings this season and scored a career-high 30 points against Rice on 1/16. Medor leads C-USA in free throws attempted.
Flanking Medor in the backcourt is fellow JUCO newcomer guard John Buggs III. Buggs chips in 10.8 points per game and he has three 20+ point outings this year. Buggs hit a buzzer-beating three against Middle Tennessee on Jan. 5 to give the Roadrunners its first C-USA victory. Freshman DJ Richards also averages double-digit points as the rookie has upped his average to 10.6 points per game. Richards, a two-time C-USA Freshman of the Week (D12, D19), is shooting the three ball at a 33.5% clip which is the second-best best on the team to Buggs who shoots 39.3%. Richards is second on the team in rebounding, pulling in 4.6 boards a game.
Senior stalwart Jacob Germany is the final double-digit scorer and averages 12.2 points per game. The fourth-year Roadrunner out of Kingston, Okla. is pulling in 8.3 rebounds per contest too, tied for the most by any player in C-USA. Germany, a 2021-22 Conference USA All-Conference Honorable Mention, adds a team-high 22 total blocks to the mix. Germany has eight double-doubles this season.
Overall, the Roadrunners are shooting 40.7 percent as a team from the field and holding foes to 44.8 percent. UTSA averages 68.9 points, 35.3 rebounds, 10.5 assists, 4.2 steals and 2.4 blocks per game as a team.
Scouting Charlotte
Charlotte is led in scoring by its sixth-man Brice Williams. Williams, who's played in all 29 games with only six starts, averages a team-high 12.6 points per contest, is shooting 41.5% from deep and is second on the team in rebounding (4.8).
Lu'Cye Patterson heads the offense, as the Minnesota native has 86 assists on the season. Aly Khalifa (11.4) and Patterson (9.6) are second and third, respectively, on the team in scoring. Khalifa also leads the team in rebounding (6.6) and blocks (21).
Montre' Gipson leads the team in steals with 31, eleven more than any other 49er, and leads the team in minutes played.
Overall, the 49ers are shooting 46.9 percent as a team from the field and holding foes to 43.0 percent. Charlotte averages 65.7 points, 29.8 rebounds, 13.0 assists, 5.3 steals and 2.4 blocks per game as a team.
Series History
Thursday's game between the Roadrunners and the 49ers will be the 11th meeting ever between the two teams. Charlotte holds the all-time series edge, owning a 6-4 record. The Roadrunners and 49ers are tied at two games apiece in games played in San Antonio. The two teams met earlier this season when Charlotte downed UTSA 72-54 in Charlotte.
Up Next
After concluding its regular season slate, UTSA will await its next opponent, sitting idle on Saturday. The Roadrunners have locked in the 11 seed for the Conference USA Tournament next week in Frisco and will compete in the 8:30 p.m. game on Wednesday, March 8, evening.
- UTSA -
