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GAME NOTES: East Carolina will try to continue its strong play at home when the Pirates host the Charlotte 49ers this evening in a non-league tussle at Minges Coliseum.

The 49ers head into this matchup after snapping a minor two-game slide with a 73-52 decision over Radford. It was the third win on the year for Charlotte, which will be participating in just its second true road game on the season. After this matchup the 49ers will return home to host Winthrop.

As for the Pirates, they ride a three-game winning streak into this matchup. The last time ECU was on the floor, they clobbered UNC Greensboro, 81-53, moving its ledger at Minges Coliseum this season to a perfect 4-0. However, this streak is coming on the heels of a two-game slide, and one of those setbacks came against Charlotte (74-63) at a neutral site.

In terms of the all-time series, the 49ers have won 13 of the 18 meetings against East Carolina, and that includes a 74-63 victory over the Pirates back in November in the Charleston Classic.

The 49ers proved to be too much for Radford from start to finish, and used their size in the paint as a clear advantage. Charlotte won the battle on the boards by a nine-rebound margin and that led to a 30-18 difference in points scored in the paint. Charlotte, which shot 51.0 percent in the victory was led by Chris Braswell, who registered 18 points, to go along with six rebounds. Braswell has been solid in the post this year, netting 10.6 ppg, to go along with 6.4 rpg, and he is one of a couple players that have picked up the slack since Shamari Spears (17.0 ppg) was suspended indefinitely. Charlotte also received a flawless effort from Phil Jones off the bench, as the forward connected on all seven of his shots and both free throws to finish the game with 16 points and eight boards. Gokhan Sirin added 14 points, while Jamar Briscoe tallied 11 points, to go along with seven assists. With Spears out, Briscoe is not the team's best scoring option and comes into tonight netting 16.4 ppg.

As for the Pirates, they are coming off their best offensive performance of this young season, scoring 81 points behind a 54.2 percent shooting effort. The team overcame 16 turnovers by connecting on 8-of-16 three-point attempts and 21-of-32 foul shots. Darrius Morrow led the charge with 21 points and five rebounds and now comes into this game leading the team with 5.3 rpg, to go along with his 10.0 ppg. Jontae Sherrod continues to be a spark plug for this team scoring 17 points off the bench in the win, and now is averaging a team- best 12.9 ppg. Jamar Abrams, who is contributing 10.6 ppg on the season, added 12 points against UNC Greensboro, while Brock young chipped in with 10 points and five assists.

The last time these two teams met it was on a neutral floor and the 49ers still had Spears. Now Charlotte must battle the Pirates in Greenville, without its top performer. Charlotte will still put up a fight, but ECU is hot right now and should have a slight edge.