HONOLULU, Hawaii – With an early 1 a.m. tip-off on the east coast, Charlotte Men’s Basketball (7-5) and Murray State (6-6) dueled for nearly three hours in a thrilling double overtime game before the 49ers pulled out the 94-90 victory over the Racers on Tuesday (Dec. 24), during the second day of the 2024 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic.
“Hats off to both teams; I thought both teams battled unbelievably hard,” said Charlotte Head Men’s Basketball Coach Aaron Fearne. “It was really physical, super competitive. We were throwing a haymaker, they’re throwing one, we’re throwing another. Both teams made big plays and the ball bounced our way a little bit, the right way at the right time.”
In regulation, the Niners were trailing 70-65 with under 30 seconds to go before the heroics of Giancarlo Rosado and Nik Graves. Rosado forced overtime with a triple with 0.9 ticks left on the clock. His three was preceded by Graves, who sidestepped into a three-ball with 20 seconds remaining at SimpliFi Arena at the Stan Sheriff Center. Graves scored 12 of his career-high 31 points in the two overtime periods while Rosado tallied 16 of his career-high 23 in the second half.
“They showed each other tonight that if we do what we’re asking them to do at a really high level, then they can come out and play some really good basketball against a really, really good team,” said Coach Fearne.
As a team, Charlotte shot 34-of-36 from the charity stripe. Graves was a perfect 12-for-12 from the free throw line, while Rosado and Robert Braswell IV went a combined 14 of 16.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Leading 84-81 with 2:36 remaining in the second overtime, Graves used a quick first step to drive past his defender, flip up an underhanded shot, and make the free throw for the big-time three-point play. The tough basket by the Durham, N.C., native extended Charlotte’s lead to 87-81, the largest of any team in either of the overtime periods.
Graves and Rosado provided the final daggers in overtime with a pair of baskets following offensive rebounds. After missing the initial layup, Graves tipped the ball in to make up for it and give Charlotte an 89-84 lead. With 42 ticks left and the Niners sporting an 89-86 lead, Rosado corralled the offensive board with one hand, gathered the ball, and made the layup for the five-point advantage. Rosado clinched the game by making one of his two free throws with 13.6 seconds remaining.
With the game tied at 80-80 in the first overtime, the Racers had a chance to win but their three-point attempt hit the rim and bounced out as time expired. Graves scored seven of Charlotte’s nine points in the first overtime. His three made free throws after being fouled on a three-point attempt tied the game at 78 with 1:33 left in the period. Under a minute to play, Graves pushed the 49ers ahead with two more free throws before the Racers returned the game to a tie.
Overtime would have never even been a discussion if not for Rosado’s triple with 0.9 ticks left on the clock at the end of regulation. The graduate forward, who entered the Diamond Head Classic 4-for-19 in his career on three-pointers, pump-faked, dribbled once, and launched for the game-tying triple.
Rosado finished the night a perfect two-for-two from behind the arc. His first three of the season came earlier in the second half. After the Racers extended their lead to 61-51 with 5:46 remaining, Rosado drained a bank shot triple as the shot clock expired. Before that shot, Murray State had a 95 percent chance of winning according to ESPN’s Analytics. On Charlotte’s next offensive possession, Graves used a crossover on the drive for two points, plus the free throw, which cut the deficit to 61-57 with 4:37 left. Every point counts and Charlotte made all nine free throw attempts in the final five minutes of regulation to set up the game-tying three from Rosado.
After taking a nine-point, 38-29 lead into halftime, the Niners saw their lead completely evaporate when the Racers went on a 17-1 run to take a 57-47 lead with 8:26 remaining. It was Murray State’s first lead of the night as Charlotte was held without a field goal for over six minutes.
The 49ers were rolling to start the game, making five of their seven shots for a 13-4 lead before ballooning their lead to 20-8. With under two minutes to play, Charlotte again held a 12-point lead, thanks to consecutive layups from Thomas and Folkes en route to the 38-29 halftime score.
STAT FACTS
Graves is eighth in the nation in free throws made (78) and attempts (100).
Braswell IV finished with 11 points and three rebounds.
The Niners’ free-throw percentage of 94.4% is a season-high.
For the fifth straight game, Graves, Braswell, Thomas, Reiber, and Nika Metskhvarishvili earned the start. Despite not being in the starting lineup, Rosado played a season-high 36 minutes. He was making his second appearance since November 27 after missing the previous four games.
“[Rosado’s] basically hardly practiced and he was a little rusty [Monday versus Hawai’i],” said Fearne. “He wasn’t great the first half and then came out in the second half and really did some good things.”
With Rosado dropping 23 points, the Niners received a season-high 39 points from their bench. Reserves Kylan Blackmon totaled eight points and Rich Rolf tallied six points and six boards.
Graves, Braswell, and Thomas have started all 12 games this season.
UP NEXT
The Niners will play the College of Charleston on Wednesday, Dec. 25, at 10:30 a.m. Hawaii Time (2:30 p.m. Eastern Time) to earn fifth place in the Diamond Head Classic.
