University of North Carolina-Charlotte Athletics issued the following announcement on Dec. 21.
The Charlotte men's basketball team concludes its non-conference slate with a Wednesday night showdown against in-state foe, Western Carolina. The opening tip from Halton Arena is set for 5 p.m. ET on CUSA.tv.
Wednesday's contest will be the second of an afternoon/evening doubleheader with the Charlotte women's basketball team. The women take on Davidson at 2:30 from Halton.
Fans can follow Wednesday's game through the live stats link, HERE, or through CUSA.tv's online stream, HERE, to listen to Matt Swierad and Charlotte alum, Trevor Wilt on the call.
LAYUP LINES
- Wednesday's contest will be the third all-time meeting between the Niners and Catamounts on the collegiate hardwood. The programs have met twice previously during a home-and-home set that took place in 1985 and '86.
- The last time the sides met, Charlotte rolled past Western, 80-63 in Cullowhee under former head man, Jeff Mullins.
- Charlotte junior Jahmir Young became the 29th player in program history to eclipse 1,000-career points, when poured in a team-high 27 points in Friday night's contest with Wake Forest. Currently with 1,034 career points, Young sits in 28th on Charlotte's all-time scoring list and is just 25 points away from passing Andrien White for 27th in scoring in program history.
- A win would give Charlotte consecutive victories for just the second time this season and for the first time since opening the year, 3-0, following wins over Monmouth, USC Upstate and Appalachian State.
- Charlotte's three-headed back court monster of Jahmir Young, Clyde Trapp and Austin Butler are all averaging double-figure points and more than six rebounds this season, making Charlotte the only team in Conference USA to feature three players who all average double-figure points and six or more rebounds per outing.
SCOUTING THE CATAMOUNTS
- Western arrives at Wednesday's matchup with a 6-6 overall record following an 85-79 loss at Georgia on Monday.
- Through 12 games, WCU has been led on the stat sheet by graduate student, Nicholas Robinson. Robinson leads the team in both scoring and rebounding with 14.7 points per game and 7.9 rebounds per contest. Robinson is also putting up his numbers in efficient fashion, holding a 41.1 shooting percentage from the field and a mark of 39.7 percent from 3-point range. His 7.9 rebounds per game also ranks fourth in the SoConn up to this point in the season.
- The Catamounts have also seen production from junior Vonterius Woolbright. He ranks fourth on the team in scoring (8.5 ppg) and second in rebounding (5.8 rpg), but has made his biggest impact in assists, leading the team and ranking second in the SoConn with 4.4 helpers per night.
- Behind the bench the Catamounts are led by first year head coach, Justin Gray, who is making his debut as a collegiate head coach this season. Gray arrived in the Western part of the state, following a stint as an assistant at Winthrop where he helped lead the Eagles to 47 victories over two seasons and a mark of 23-2 and the Big South Tournament title last season.
SERIES HISTORY
- The Niners and Catamounts have met just two times perviously in a home-and-home series in 1985 and 1986 under then Charlotte head man, Jeff Mullins.
- CLT won both of those meetings by double-digits, earning a 94-76 dub in the Queen City, before downing the Catamounts in the return trip to Cullowhee, 80-63 the next season.
- Those victories over WCU came amid major transition in Mullins first two seasons as the Niners made a 10-win improvement from '85 to '86, before eventually making the NCAA Tournament and winning the Sun Belt.
LAST TIME OUT
- A dominant effort on the defensive end and a late, momentum-shifting 25-9 run over the night's final 11:33, pushed Charlotte past Maryland Eastern Shore, 70-54.
- Jahmir Young once again led the Niners in scoring, with 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field. Clyde Trapp was huge on the glass, pulling down a game-high 12 boards, and senior Austin Butler added in 11 points of his own on the score sheet.
- Junior Musa Jallow was a massive difference maker off the bench scoring 10 points in 14 minutes and finishing the night with a game-high plus/minus of +30 in his 49er debut.
THE MOOSE IS FINALLY LOOSE
- Junior Musa Jallow made his long-awaited debut in a Green & White uniform on Monday night against Maryland Eastern Shore after missing the season's first 10 games with an ankle injury dating to his time at Ohio State.
- In his debut, the Bloomington, Indiana native put in an incredibly effective 14-minute shift, scoring 10 points on 3-of-6 shooting, grabbed a pair of rebounds, dished out two assists and tallied a pair of steals.
- His biggest impact however came on the defensive end where his length and close out ability affected a number of Eastern Shore shots that led to stops for the Niners. He finished the evening's proceedings with an eye-popping plus/minus of+30 despite only playing 14 minutes.
- Jallow appeared in 94 games, while making 26 starts during his time at Ohio State.
MIR REACHES ELITE CLT STATUS
- Charlotte junior, Jahmir Young reached elite status among Charlotte scorers by becoming the 29th-ever Niner to reach 1,000 career points with a driving layup early in the second half during Charlotte's late comeback vs. Wake Forest on Friday.
- In his career in the Queen City, Young has averaged 15.9 points per game, has scored in double-figures in 56 of his 65 appearances as a Niner and reached 20 points or more on 22 different occasions with eight of those games coming this season.
- Young has also started all 65 games of his career, earned the C-USA Freshman of the Year award in 2019-20 and was named to the All-C-USA First team last season after ranking fourth in Conference USA in scoring with 18.0 points per game.
- This season, Young ranks first on the team and second in the league in scoring with 20.1 points per game through nine games. He has scored in double-figures in every game, 20-plus seven times and 25-plus four times.
UP NEXT
Charlotte will take eight days off for the holiday break, before playing its long-awaited Conference USA opener on New Years Eve Eve in Boca Raton against FAU. The opening tip from FAU Arena is slated for 7 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
Original source can be found here.
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