Charlotte 49ers basketball: What to know about men’s, women’s teams as season opens

Tipoff for the Charlotte 49ers’ men’s basketball season is here, and interim head coach Aaron Fearne and his team are itching to get back on the court in their first season in the American Athletic Conference.

Despite being picked to finish 13th out of 14 teams in the league in the preseason, Fearne expects various key contributors to shine in his ‘prove-it’ year as interim head coach.

“I like our depth; I think it puts pressure on each position. They have to show up each day to perform because there’s someone right behind them that will take their spot. We want to have success, and that’s going to be the group that can come together and perform on a daily basis,” Fearne said. “People will shine at different times, and I think there will be a lot of different pieces as the year goes on, but there’s going to have to be some growth from some guys pretty quickly, and there’s going to be more added pressure there, too. That’s exciting for me, and that’s why you coach.”

Will the 49ers surprise the coaches and media members who picked them to finish second-to-last in their first taste of AAC basketball?

That depends on how Fearne and the 49ers’ revamped roster answers these questions.

Who will replace the production of Brice Williams and Aly Khalifa?

Just days after winning the CBI Tournament championship in Daytona to close their season, Charlotte lost its top two scorers and rebounders, Brice Williams (Nebraska) and Aly Khalifa (BYU).

Fearne hinted at the roster’s depth in the team’s preseason press conference, and there isn’t a singular player that can replace the production; it looks to be by committee.

Returning at wing is Igor Milicic Jr., who started his career at Virginia and played 13 games for his father on the Polish national team over the summer. Milicic, a 6-foot-10 forward, started 22 games for Ron Sanchez’s group last season, scoring 7.7 points and grabbing 3.1 rebounds per game while shooting 46.4% from the field and 34% from beyond the arc.

While Milicic will likely serve as the team’s go-to three-level scorer on the wing, returning guard Lu’Cye Patterson will be the team’s distributor and will have the ball in his hands in crunch time. Jackson Threadgill, Isaiah Folkes and Robert Braswell will all see heavy minutes this season as well.

Patterson played in all 36 games a season ago and was the team’s third-leading scorer with 10.2 points per game. Patterson led the team with 99 assists and 123 free throw attempts a season ago, setting up his teammates and drawing fouls to earn his team easy points — effectively slowing the game down.

Patterson plays the game at his own pace, which will look much different this season under Fearne.

Charlotte’s pushing the tempo this year. What does that look like?

Charlotte averaged just 63.4 possessions per game a season ago, ranking 361 st out of 363 teams in the nation. Fast-break opportunities were nearly non-existent, scoring less than four points per game in transition.

Milicic elaborated on Fearne’s changes on both sides of the ball at Tuesday’s press conference.

“There’s a lot of differences in the offense. We’re playing faster and pushing in transition. Defensively, we’re pretty much the same, still in the (Pack Line) trying to limit the inside scoring,” Milicic said.

“Mainly, the offensive end is different. We’re still trying to push the ball inside and play through our centers, but the main thing is we’re going to play faster.”

Under Sanchez, Charlotte was at its best when it controlled the tempo with Khalifa facilitating from the post, finding cutters and utilizing a plethora of dribble handoffs and flare screens to find high-percentage looks. With Fearne, the 49ers will look to utilize their improved size to control the glass with the ability to match an opponent’s speed or slow the game down and essentially play bully-ball.

“I think they enjoy playing (fast), but also that has to translate to winning. But I think that’s what great teams can do. They can play the slow power game and then have the ability to get out in transition,” Fearne said. “I’m happy where we are. Obviously, not content, but we’ll keep growing as the season goes on.”

Who are the 49ers’ bigs?

This is one of Charlotte’s biggest teams in program history. The 49ers have five forwards that are 6-foot-10 or taller, led by USC transfer Iaroslav Niagu (7-foot), Washington State transfer Dishon Jackson (6-foot-11) and Rutgers transfer Dean Reiber (6-foot-10).

Niagun, a Krasnodar, Russia native, played in 15 games in his lone season with the Trojans and attended the NBA Global Academy in Australia, where he averaged 8.7 points and 5.3 rebounds over the course of six games.

Jackson de-committed and re-committed to the 49ers following Sanchez’s exit and Fearne’s promotion, and the 260-pound center’s career-best performance came against NBA lottery pick Evan Mobley in 2021, when he scored 18 points on 8 of 12 shooting. Jackson missed the 2022-23 season with injury but has been participating in offseason workouts for the 49ers.

Reiber is the lone big-man addition with a presence beyond the arc, shooting a career-best 58.3% from 3-point land in 2021 (only 12 attempts on the season). The Greensboro native was utilized as a rotational piece with the Scarlet Knights and will likely serve a similar role with the 49ers.

Charlotte’s men’s team opens with Maine on Monday night, November 6, on ESPN+.

Charlotte women’s outlook

Despite new faces and a new conference for the women’s hoops team, two things remain the same.

Head coach Cara Consuegra is back for her 13th season as head coach, and the team’s best player, Dazia Lawrence, is back for her redshirt junior season following an appearance for Team USA’s U23 3v3 FIBA World Cup team in Poland.

But how successful will Consuegra’s group be in their first season in the American, picked to finish 10th out of 14 teams? It depends on how they answer these questions.

What do the incoming transfers bring?

Charlotte added five transfers through the portal, headlined by guard Olivia Porter from Michigan State, Jewel Watkins from Coppin State, and Imani Smith from Gulf Coast State. The trio will add floor-spacing, facilitating and defense to a Charlotte women’s team that won just 12 games in an injury-plagued 2022-23 campaign.

“I could probably tell you a new person every day. I think that’s a really good thing,” Consuegra said of the newcomers. “Olivia Porter will be our starting point guard, and she’s earned that. She has a great presence about her, and she gets the team organized and under control. I’ve been excited about Jewel Watkins. She’s a two-way player and has a chance to be maybe our best defender.”

Does the non-conference slate prepare Charlotte for the AAC?

Charlotte’s season starts with arguably its biggest test — a road trip to Raleigh to take on North Carolina State, which beat Consuegra’s team by 48 points in the 49ers’ first road trip last season.

Following the road test, Charlotte hosts three games in Halton before heading to Puerto Rico for the San Juan Shootout over Thanksgiving. After the tropical business trip, Charlotte will match up with in-state programs Wake Forest and Davidson — both of which beat Charlotte a season ago.

It’s a gauntlet of a non-conference slate, but the 49ers are relishing the opportunity to continue to grow.

“Our team has been working extremely hard. I’ve been really pleased with our progress. We don’t want to be our best right now, but I think we’re in a really solid place. We’ll continue to grow for a very big challenge for us on Nov. 7 at N.C. State.”