Charlotte?s 17-4 record has the attention of Temple coach Fran Dunphy, whose Owls will host the 49ers at 7 p.m. Wednesday in an Atlantic 10 game at Liacouras Center.
At 5-2, Charlotte is in a three-way tie for second place in the league with 14th-ranked Butler and Saint Louis, a half-game behind Virginia Commonwealth (6-2).
And Dunphy understands why the 49ers, to this point, are the most improved team in the league.
?They?re deep and that?s really a troublesome thing for us,? he said. ?I would like to say we?re looking forward to hosting them, but we?re really not.?
The 49ers, who will be without leading scorer DeMario Mayfield because of an indefinite suspension, have perhaps the deepest rotation in the league, with nine players (including Mayfield) averaging at least 15 minutes per game.
And little-used freshmen ? guard Ivan Benkovic and center Mike Thorne ? played key roles in the 66-65 victory Saturday against Massachusetts, a game the 49ers were without Mayfield and forward Darion Clark (ankle).
Dunphy said he particularly is concerned with Charlotte freshman forward Willie Clayton, whose 7.3 rebounds per game rank seventh in the league, and sophomore point guard Pierria Henry, whose 2.8 steals per game is tied for second.
?Clayton gets a boatload of offensive rebounds,? said Dunphy, whose Owls (14-7, 3-4) own a victory against ninth-ranked Syracuse. ?And Henry, with how many steals he has, impacts the game in so many ways. He doesn?t need to score but he can.?
Wednesday?s game will continue a tough stretch for the 49ers ? they will host VCU on Saturday, then play Feb. 13 at Butler and at Saint Louis three days later. After eight days off, Charlotte will get Temple again on Feb. 24 at Halton Arena.
49ers coach Alan Major doesn?t think he needs to worry about his team looking ahead to those games.
?Kids are pretty bright anymore,? he said. ?If you look too far ahead, you can skip a step. And there?s nobody in this league you can skip a step with.?
----------------------------------
The 49ers face one of the top guards in the Atlantic 10 in Temple?s Khalif Wyatt, who is averaging 26.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and four assists in the Owls? past two games. Temple also has forward Scootie Randall, who missed last season with a knee injury. Charlotte is 0-4 against the Owls in Philadelphia since joining the Atlantic 10 (both teams leave the league after this season). Charlotte will be without guard DeMario Mayfield (suspension) but should have back forward Darion Clark, who missed Saturday?s game against Massachusetts with an ankle injury. David Scott
At 5-2, Charlotte is in a three-way tie for second place in the league with 14th-ranked Butler and Saint Louis, a half-game behind Virginia Commonwealth (6-2).
And Dunphy understands why the 49ers, to this point, are the most improved team in the league.
?They?re deep and that?s really a troublesome thing for us,? he said. ?I would like to say we?re looking forward to hosting them, but we?re really not.?
The 49ers, who will be without leading scorer DeMario Mayfield because of an indefinite suspension, have perhaps the deepest rotation in the league, with nine players (including Mayfield) averaging at least 15 minutes per game.
And little-used freshmen ? guard Ivan Benkovic and center Mike Thorne ? played key roles in the 66-65 victory Saturday against Massachusetts, a game the 49ers were without Mayfield and forward Darion Clark (ankle).
Dunphy said he particularly is concerned with Charlotte freshman forward Willie Clayton, whose 7.3 rebounds per game rank seventh in the league, and sophomore point guard Pierria Henry, whose 2.8 steals per game is tied for second.
?Clayton gets a boatload of offensive rebounds,? said Dunphy, whose Owls (14-7, 3-4) own a victory against ninth-ranked Syracuse. ?And Henry, with how many steals he has, impacts the game in so many ways. He doesn?t need to score but he can.?
Wednesday?s game will continue a tough stretch for the 49ers ? they will host VCU on Saturday, then play Feb. 13 at Butler and at Saint Louis three days later. After eight days off, Charlotte will get Temple again on Feb. 24 at Halton Arena.
49ers coach Alan Major doesn?t think he needs to worry about his team looking ahead to those games.
?Kids are pretty bright anymore,? he said. ?If you look too far ahead, you can skip a step. And there?s nobody in this league you can skip a step with.?
----------------------------------
The 49ers face one of the top guards in the Atlantic 10 in Temple?s Khalif Wyatt, who is averaging 26.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and four assists in the Owls? past two games. Temple also has forward Scootie Randall, who missed last season with a knee injury. Charlotte is 0-4 against the Owls in Philadelphia since joining the Atlantic 10 (both teams leave the league after this season). Charlotte will be without guard DeMario Mayfield (suspension) but should have back forward Darion Clark, who missed Saturday?s game against Massachusetts with an ankle injury. David Scott
