Charlotte drops fourth straight game in loss to Florida Atlantic

CHARLOTTE ATHLETICS

Giancarlo Rosado continued his recovery from a December injury with 14 points and four rebounds for Charlotte in a 75-64 loss to Florida Atlantic. The 49ers have lost four straight.

A rough second half led to Charlotte men’s basketball’s demise against Florida Atlantic.

The 49ers (7-9, 0-3 AAC) trailed 35-30 at halftime, but 56.7% shooting in the half by FAU (9-7, 2-1 AAC) resulting in a 75-64 win and Charlotte’s fourth straight loss ahead of a two-game road trip at Tulsa and Wichita State.

“I thought the last couple of games, I've been very disappointed, probably the way we've defended probably for the last three or four weeks,” 49ers head coach Aaron Fearne said, “and definitely have challenged them quite aggressively to be better in that department. I feel like the last couple of games, we've come out and shown a level of discipline and execution at a better level. It's not where it needs to be yet. [FAU] is a very good offensive team, and they are very talented.”

Charlotte was able to make life difficult for the Owls in the first half, but Florida Atlantic rallied in the final two minutes to regain the lead. Fearne was happy with the way the 49ers were able to force the Owls into late shot clock situations and tough shots. He wasn’t pleased with their 13 turnovers.

“I felt like in the first half, we kind of got them on their heels a little bit,” Fearne said. “We were very good with our ball screen coverages and rotations, and we're able to turn them over a little bit and make life difficult for them. At times, we did not, obviously, shoot real well from the foul line in the first half and we did not finish the half very well. We turned the ball over and then we started the half turning the ball over five times. Unacceptable. [I’m] extremely disappointed with that.”

Charlotte’s leading scorer Nik Graves, who came into the game averaging 17.5 points per game, was limited to five points and shot just 25% from the floor. Owls’ head coach John Jakus knew coming in that Graves was going to be a defensive focal point.

“He can get to his left hand at any time,” Jakus said. “And then the thing is, a third of their points come from the free throw line, and he's the one who gets to the free throw line. So, the big thing today, I think, he was 1-of-4 from the line. Normally, he shoots six to 10 [free throws per game], so him keeping him off the line and then missing a couple when he got there, I think was the big difference.”

Charlotte forward Giancarlo Rosado finished with a team-high 14 points with four rebounds and two assists. Rosado — a transfer from FAU — said it was nice being able to play his old team, although he would have rather been on the winning side.

“It was good playing against them,” Rosado said. “Seeing a couple guys that you know I came up with. I helped raise them boys. My young boy [Tre Carroll] looks good out there… proud of him. [Devin] Vanterpool too. They have a good program over there, but it was cool.”

Rosado missed time in the early part of December due to injury, but Fearne is happy with his progress getting back into the lineup after rehab.

“[Rosado] has had a tough month and a half because he's been hurt,” Fearne said. “He came back just before we played in the Diamond Head down in Hawaii and probably played a little better than I thought he would, coming off that long break.”

Comments