An Interrogatory with: UNC-Charlotte
February 9, 2010 Don Donoher 
The Xavier game is behind us and while the 25 point ass whipping was fantastic, we need to move along. Up next for the Flyers are the 49ers of the University of North Carolina-Charlotte. I like saying it that way because I am pretty sure it pisses off their fan base. According to those Tobacco Road wannabes, it is just plain "Charlotte." Your anger is duly noted here. Here to help us preview this epic Atlantic-14 throw down is none other than Jim Utter, the Swiss Army knife blogger of all things Charlotte sports. Jim is the original FOTB (friend of the blog) and runs his own UNC-Charlotte blog called The Gold Mine. Jim also gets paid straight cash for covering EVERYTHING for the Charlotte Observer. Despite being super busy covering the Danica Patrick show at the Daytona 500, Jim took the time to answer my highly researched questions. The Utter insanity is below.
SHAKE AND BAKE!!!DD: I think we have to start out by talking about Charlotte's fantastic season so far. In my preview chat with you back in August you stated, "Spears' attitude and determination is unmatched on the team, and it pained him to sit and watch last year's losses from the bench. Charlotte should have its best inside-outside game in years." Clearly you weren't talking outside of your element, Jim. How does this team rank with the Charlotte teams of year's past?
Jim: All of Charlotte's best teams have had a solid inside-outside game, but I think this team is more inside focused, perhaps more so than any other recent 49ers squad. Spears was expected to be a solid force in the A-10 coming from Boston College, but the quick development of freshman Chris Braswell, as well as the improvement in 6-10 center Phil Jones, has made Charlotte more of a look-inside first, then-outside team. Don't get me wrong, Derrio Green can still knock down the 3 (from anywhere) but its not generally the focal point of the offense.
DD: More on Shamari Spears. Many feel the Player of the Year honor is Jordan Crawford's to lose. In my opinion, Spears is sort of being forgotten in this conference. I think I have an answer for that. Many "fans" still don't even know that Charlotte is in the Atlantic-14! Regardless, Spears is averaging 17 and 6 while shooting around 50%. What does Dayton have to do to stop this freight train?
Jim: I suspect Dayton will do what most other teams will - double-team Spears at times and try to force him away from the basket. One of his strengths is his jumper, particularly his fadeaway jumper - and I promise you WILL see it a few times. Also, with the development of Braswell, Spears has found some more working room around the rim and does a good job making teams' pay.
DD: Again, there are six newcomers on this team. Some might say that Charlotte is playing out of their asses. I tend to think they are too young to realize just how good they truly are. What, in your opinion, is the main strength of this team and what is something that they can work on?
Jim: There are LOTS of ways for the 49ers to score, which is the biggest strength, and a senior point guard in DiJuan Harris who has an uncanny ability to find which one is hot on a regular basis and at the right time. Charlotte's biggest problem this season has been first-half turnovers - which against good teams inevitably puts them in an early hole. Against teams like Duke and Tennessee it was just too much to overcome.
How much would you pay to see her naked?DD: Is Jimmy Johnson an athlete? Sorry, had to throw that one in there since you are covering the Daytona 500.
Jim: A couple years ago, I did eight laps by myself in a Cup car at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte. I was done. Anyone who thinks drivers aren't athletes please visit the Richard Petty Driving School and test the theory yourself.
DD: Looking at the schedule, I see games against Duke, Louisville, Old Dominion, Tennessee, Xavier, and Richmond, all on the road. The 49ers went 2-4 in those games. Needless to say, they are not a good road team. However, you have to think that this team will be prepared for the hostile Dayton crowd. Dayton's fan base has been bickering back and forth for years about the Flyers' road schedule. Do you find it favorable to play such a tough road schedule that will inevitably bring some losses and ass kickings (like @ Duke), or do you think it has helped this team succeed when it plays the lowly A-14 teams on the road? My theory is that if a team can play well on the road versus the big boys (again, ass kicking at Duke aside), they will have no problem playing in the "gyms" of Fordham, St. Bonaventure, and LaSalle.
Jim: Lutz has always told me, "Good teams win at home; great teams win on the road." So far this season Charlotte has been exceptional on the road in league play, outside of its loss at Xavier. That's not to say they haven't had any tough games, but the bottom line is they've gotten W's. I definitely think the tough atmosphere the 49ers faced at Duke, Louisville, Tennessee, etc. early in the season showed them where they needed to be -- as those would likely be some of the stiffest competition they would face all season.
DD: Bobby Lutz has, quoting you, "shown solid gains." Baring an epic collapse, Lutz should be roaming the sidelines in Charlotte for a few more years, no?
Jim: Absolutely, and I never believed his job was in jeopardy. For one, state schools aren't going to fork over lots of money in this economy to buy out contracts when they're cutting budgets on the education end.
DD: This team not only gets to the line, they get to the line a lot and make their FT's at an impressive 73% clip. Can you give some tips to the Flyers on how to make free throws? All joking aside, in the Atlantic-14, there are not many centers/big men that can stop a team from pounding it inside. Are we safe to assume that Spears and Co. will take it to Huelsman, Searcy, and Wright early and often, hoping to get them into foul trouble?
BEWARE: Do not feed! Known to hit fadeaway jumpersJim: Charlotte's record turnaround from last season is remarkable; it's free throw shooting turnaround is uncanny. But here's the key: Charlotte's top three scorers - Spears, Braswell and Green - are also three of the team's best free throw shooters. Now, that's a correlation any team would love. I definitely think Charlotte will pound the ball inside and would be more than happy living off the line.
DD: Last one, let's hear a prediction. Looking quickly at the last 7 matchups, Charlotte holds a slim 4-3 lead. Dayton has won 3 of the 4 games at UD Arena (Charlotte won at UD in '06). Charlotte is always the white whale for Dayton, who can never win in NC. So again, let's hear what the outcome will be.
Jim: This is tough. But because Charlotte has played much better when it has had time to prepare (the 49ers last played Saturday), I'm going to go with Charlotte wins 82-79 in OT.
Well there you have it. Straight from the source's mouth. While we can all disagree whether or not NASCAR drivers are athletes, we all can agree that the game tomorrow is going to separate the men from the boys. While a loss won't hurt Charlotte, as they only have one loss, it will severely impact Dayton's post-season aspirations as they will find themselves further away from the leaders. Buckle up, kiddos! It is going to be a fun 2.5 weeks!
Reader Comments (10)
Donny busting out the Wanda Sykes quote.
"The Utter insanity is below."
You have no shame.
Donoher, I enjoyed it, kudos!
I would like to state that my "Fun three weeks comment" was stated the Thursday before St. Bonaventure.
Meaning next Thursday the "fun three weeks" are over. That is 9 days from now.
So far in the "fun three weeks" UD has taken out St Bon and X by double digits ... Charlotte is next.
Charlotte got killed at Old Dominion and Tennessee as well as Duke. They did beat Louisville, but that team was without three players. I think we will find out how they may fair in the rest of the slate. I really think they DO need to win, as does UD.
One thing that worries me about Charlotte is they have won 7 straight
In those seven, four have come on the road ... @ Richmond (By 12), @ LaSalle, @ Umass and @ Fordham (By 5) ... even though the last three don't strike much fear into you they still have shown the ability to win away from home.
I think Charlotte is a Dayton type team in the matter that if they are hot they can beat anyone (@ Louisville by 12, @ Richmond by 12, Temple by 10) but usually they play to the opponents skill level (Fordham by 5, GW by 4, LaSalle by 2) or cannot make a three to save their life (l to ODU by 30, X by 12).
Personally I think this game will go back and forth because the teams have similar skill sets. Charlotte is having a 2008-09 Dayton season where they get all the breaks at the end and win the close ones and then put together a perfect game every 10 days ...
UD 73
Char 68
i think charlotee is either the 5th or 6th best of the hexagon of death, and we are about to see this tomorrow. charlotte is a talented team and will play well, but in the end ud overmatches them, although i am interested to see how kurt and the big dog play down low. ud 78 charlotte 68
Something tells me this game won't be on TV in Calgary...
Won't even be on TV in Centerville.
Gotta love that CBS College Sports TV deal.
Danica naked - $20.
Danica naked and next to you in bed, surrounded by used condoms and empty beer bottles - Priceless.
Tomorrow's game is going to be huge for UD. We need this win to stay up with the rest of the pack and stay in the tourney talk. I agree with John, this will be a back-and-forth game until the last 4 or 5 minutes, when one of the teams starts to pull ahead for good. My "money" is with the Flyers, simply because I think that we'll still be pumped from the X win, and its a home game. UD takes it, 75-67.
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