| |
| School Name: | University of North Carolina at Charlotte |
| Location: | Charlotte, North Carolina |
| Arena: | Halton Arena |
| Capacity: | 9,105 |
| Conference: | Conference USA |
| Head coach: | Alan Major |
The Charlotte 49ers men's basketball team represents the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in NCAA Division I sports, currently as members of American Athletic Conference.
Coaches[]
| Coach | Tenure | Wins | Losses | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey Murphy | 1965–70 | 44 | 81 | |||||||
| Bill Foster | 1970–75 | 88 | 38 | |||||||
| Lee Rose | 1975–78 | 72 | 18 | |||||||
| Mike Pratt | 1978–82 | 56 | 52 | |||||||
| Hal Wissel | 1982–85 | 22 | 62 | |||||||
| Jeff Mullins | 1985–96 | 182 | 142 | |||||||
| Melvin Watkins | 1996–98 | 42 | 20 | |||||||
| Bobby Lutz | 1998–2010 | 218 | 158 | |||||||
| Alan Major | 2010– | 10 | 20 | |||||||
| Totals | 732 | 577 | ||||||||
Professional Players[]
The following Charlotte basketball players appeared in at least one game in the NBA:
- Cedric Ball (1990)
- Eddie Basden (2005–2006)
- Sean Colson (2000–2001)
- Byron Dinkins (1990–1991)
- DeMarco Johnson (1999–2000)
- Chad Kinch (1980–1981)
- Cedric Maxwell (1977–1988)
- Rodney White (2001–2005)
Uniforms[]
Currently, Charlotte's primary uniforms feature a white jersey with green lettering and trim for home games, and a green jersey with white lettering and trim for away games. The team wore black road jerseys from 2001 to 2003, and wore black jerseys for a game against Tennessee in 2010.
Home Venues[]
- Local high school gymnasiums (1965–1970)
- Belk Gymnasium (1970–1976)
- Bojangles Coliseum (1976–1988, 1993–1996)
- Charlotte Coliseum (1988–1993)
- Dale F. Halton Arena (1996–present)
- Time Warner Cable Arena (occasional, 2007–present)
Rivalries[]
Charlotte has had its fair share of intense rivalries. One of the most heated and intense rivalries was with the Bob Huggins-coached Cincinnati Bearcats of Conference USA. Throughout a ten-year period from 1995-96 to 2004-05, Charlotte managed to upset Cincinnati teams ranked #3, #8, #18, #20 in the country. In what became known as the Cincinnati Incident, a brawl broke out between Cincinnati and the Charlotte student section, when a Cincinnati player threw the basketball into the stands.[citation needed] This led to the creation of a 'buffer zone' being implemented behind the visiting team's bench. ESPN commentator Andy Katz provided this explanation on why Charlotte-Cincinnati was one of the juiciest rivalries in the country: "The games are hotly contested usually and the fans in Charlotte don't like Cincinnati. They get up for this game more than any other."[citation needed]
Charlotte's 29-year rivalry with the Davidson Wildcats sees Mecklenburg County's only two Division I schools go head-to-head for the Hornet's Nest Trophy. Charlotte leads the series 26-11. With some exceptions, the two schools play annually.
Since Charlotte's move to the Atlantic 10, a clear-cut main conference rival has yet to emerge. Commentators have pointed to the Xavier Musketeers and George Washington Colonials as potential rivals.[citation needed]