Curtis Withers scored 39 points at Saint Louis, the most by a 49er since 1982. |
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Withers Powers Charlotte Past Saint Louis
Feb. 12, 2005
Saint Louis - There was certainly nothing easy about it, but in the end, thanks to a monster game from junior Curtis Withers, the 49ers got what they wanted, an 83-78 road victory at Saint Louis, in overtime.
Charlotte, which had never won at the Savvis Center losing the previous eight meetings there, climbed on Withers back, as the power forward scored a career-high 39 points with 14 rebounds. The 39 points is the most by a 49er since Bobby Potts score 40 against Jacksonville in 1982 and they are the fifth-most points ever scored by a 49er in school history.
Withers scored seven of the Niners 13 points in overtime, converting 5-of-6 free throws and punctuating the performance with a dunk as time expired.
The 49ers led 35-33 at the half and quickly pushed it to eight, 48-40 with 14:26 to play. A three-pointer by EJ Drayton kept it at eight, 46-54, with 11:08 to play and a three-pointer by Withers, kept it at eight, 59-51 with 7:59 left. A conventional three-point play by Withers gave Charlotte a nine-point, 57-66 lead with 4:50 left, but Saint Louis rallied to within two, 66-64, on an Anthony Drejaj three-pointer with 2:37 to play. Ian Vouyoukas hit one of two free throws with :53 seconds left to make it a one-point game, 68-67. Withers tapped in a Eddie Basden missed layup with :16 seconds left to put the Niners back up by three, but Darren Clarke came off the bench to tie the game with two seconds to play on a three-pointer from the left wing.
In overtime, Withers hit 3-of-4 free throws in the first minute to put the Niners up three, 73-70 and this time Charlotte was able to hold the lead. A Vouyoukas layup with :33 seconds left made it a one-point game, 75-74, but Mitchell Baldwin, Withers and Basden went a combined 6-of-6 from the line in the final :29 seconds to ice the win.
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Basden finished with 15 points, eight rebounds, four assists and a steal, Brendan Plavich had 12 points and E.J. Drayton 11 for the 49ers. Saint Louis scored a season-high 78 points with five players in double-figures, led by Drejaj's, 17 points.
Thanks to Withers (11-of-13), Basden (9-of-10) and Drayton (5-of-7), Charlotte shot 80% from the foul line (28-of-35), including 11-of-12 from the stripe in overtime.
In the last six games, Withers is averaging 21.8 points and 10 rebounds. He notched his eighth double-double, tonight, with his fifth-game of 20 or more points. He has scored 20 or more in three of the last four games.
