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kyxu
02-19-2009, 09:22 PM
Musketeers get Mack’d by Charlotte, 65-60
By Mike Damone

Xavier’s 6-0 record versus the Charlotte 49ers, along with any possibility of gaining late momentum heading into the conference tournament, went with a resounding “thud” Thursday night at Halton Arena.

It was an outcome similar to the Musketeers’ attempts to corral Charlotte star Lamont Mack (12 pts, 5 reb), who simply wouldn’t be denied, scoring 11 points over the game’s final six minutes, including a dagger three from the corner with 35 seconds left, to lift the 49ers to just their 10th win of the season, 65-60, over the #16 Musketeers (21-5, 9-3).

The loss was Xavier’s third in its last four games, and its third-straight loss on the road after starting the season an impressive 6-0 on its opponents’ home floor. In a game that saw 17 ties and 24 lead changes, the Musketeers never took more than a three-point lead, which left the door wide open for a 49er team (10-15, 4-7) that has been much-improved as of late.

Mack came into Thursday night’s contest averaging around 18 points per game during conference play, but was held scoreless for the game’s first 30 minutes. But as the game reached crunch time, Mack regained his form, hitting arguably the game’s biggest shot – a fall-away three from the corner – to put the 49ers up four with 35 seconds to go to spur the upset.

A lay-up from junior Derrick Brown (9 pts, 3 reb) brought Xavier to within two, 62-60, but the 49ers made good on their free throws down the stretch to provide the final margin. Mack scored all of his points in the game’s final eight minutes to seal the deal for Charlotte.

It looked as if the Musketeers would weather the 49ers late in the second half, despite a stalling offense. With the Musketeers trailing by two, 48-46, with under eight minutes to play, senior BJ Raymond (9 pts, 3 reb) tied the game with a two-point jumper, then banked home another long jump-shot while being fouled to give the Musketeers a three-point lead, 51-48.

Mack answered with a bucket inside, but senior CJ Anderson (13 pts, 7 reb) put back a Raymond miss to put the Musketeers back on top by three. Mack then took over, going on his own 6-0 run to give Charlotte the lead for good, 56-53, with 4:03 to go.

Mack wasn’t alone in his efforts to spring the upset. Ian Anderson (16 pts, 6 reb) scored a career-high 16 points off 5-of-7 shooting from the field, and often used his long-range ability to grab leads back from Xavier and ignite the partisan crowd.

An’Juan Wilderness (15 pts, 6 reb) also led the 49ers in the first half with nine points, and making things difficult on the Musketeers. Assist-machine DiJuan Harris (7 pts, 5 reb, 10 ast) drove the lane at will against the Musketeers, finding the open man or finishing in traffic. Sophomore Jamel McLean provided energy on offense and on the boards for the Musketeers in the first half, finishing with eight points and eight rebounds.

With Xavier leading 27-24 with under two minutes to go in the first half, Harris hit a pull-up jumper to cut Xavier’s lead to one, then found Javarris Barnett (3 points) all alone in the corner for a three in the to give the 49ers the lead, 29-27, just before the halftime buzzer.

The Anderson’s led their respective teams in points, with Ian scoring 16 for Charlotte and CJ leading Xavier with 13. The loss bumps Xavier to second-place in the Atlantic 10 standings with just four games remaining. It is also the first time in school history the Musketeers have lost to Charlotte.

Xavier returns home to take on the George Washington Colonials. In the teams’ last meeting, CJ Anderson led the Musketeers with 15 in Xavier’s 66-56 win in Cincinnati. The Colonials (7-15, 1-9) are coming off a 69-51 loss at Charlotte.