Title Time!
Nov. 18, 2000
Raleigh, N.C. - The Charlotte 49ers, led by freshman phenom Rodney White, dismantled NC State, 95-78, to claim the championship of the CoSIDA Classic in Raleigh's Entertainment and Sports Arena, Saturday night.
White, who garnered Tournament MVP honors, had 21 points and eight rebounds to lead the 49ers charge. It was his second straight 20+ scoring night. Friday, he became the first 49er freshman since Jarvis Lang (1990) to score at least 20 points in his college debut.
Fellow newcomer Demon Brown added 20 points, six assists and 0 turnovers. Junior Cam Stephens added his second double-double of the year with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Both Brown and Stephens joined White on the all-tournament team.
The victory, which is NC State's worst loss in the ESA, is the 49ers first against an ACC opponent since a 1990 win over Clemson.
The 49ers, who trailed by as much as seven in the first half rallied to take a 44-39 lead into the lockerroom. Brown hit a three to tie the game at 37-37 and added another three on the next possession to give the Niners a 40-37 lead with 2:42 left to play in the first half.
In the second half, a Brown tip-in at 14:38 put the Niners ahead by 12, 61-49. With Stephens and senior James Zimmerman sidelined with four fouls with over 10 minutes to play, head coach Bobby Lutz used the team's depth to increase the lead. White nailed a three, senior Diego Guevara hit a runner and added a pair of free throws, junior Jermaine Williams added two free throws and White added the exclamation point on a 14-2 run with a slam dunk to put the Niners ahead by 24, 94-70 with 2:37 left to play.
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Guevara finished with 12 points for his second straight double-figure outing.
"Demon Brown bounced back from a sub-par game, last night," Lutz said. "That is the thing about this team. I tried to tell them, on different nights it is going to be different lineups and we just have to have a team mentality and if we do, they have to trust me to punch the right buttons."
The 49ers last regular-season tournament title came in 1994-95 when they won the Lobo Invitational.
"With just a few exceptions tonight, I thought we played with great poise and composure," Lutz said. "This is a great win for us. We have other tough games coming up. I think in the state it means the most. In our state, this means more to win on the road against a team that has a wonderful chance of being in the NCAA Tournament."
The 49ers (2-0) travel to St. Bonaventure, Saturday.
