Major: 'Something special's going to happen'

With four players (including two walk-ons) on the bench, Charlotte beat Winthrop 68-57 Tuesday. Charles Dewhurst's broken finger was the latest dose of bad news for the 49ers pregame, but their resiliency against the Eagles gave coach Alan Major lots of hope: “I don’t know when it will happen, but it will happen and I keep believing it. Something special is going to happen with this group. I don’t know what that means. But if we keep going, keep fighting and don’t crack, the game honors that. If you do things right – even if you don’t win every game -- the game will find ways to take care of you.”
-- The 49ers sure didn't look good against a full-court press the Eagles threw at them during the second half of the 68-57 victory. Charlotte, which had just three turnovers in the first half, turned it over 10 times in the second half as a 42-18 halftime lead dissolved to just a six-point margin with under 3 minutes remaining.
Major's take: "We got ahead of ourselves a little bit. We always want to make sure we keep a buddy system in the backcourt and one guy was back there by himself. But we got it straightened out."

-- The 49ers shot 64.3 percent in the first half and 18.2 percent in the second half (making just 4 of 22 shots).

-- Winthrop's Reggie Middleton said his team knew the 49ers are shorthanded and wanted to tire them out. East Carolina's players said the same thing about Charlotte last week. Derrio Green admitted he was tired after the game. He's still struggling with his shot, going 2 for 10. But he's also going to the basket a lot, which is a good way to bust out of a slump.

-- Javarris Barnett, who's getting lots of playing time with Shamari Spears suspended, didn't score but had six rebounds, five on the defensive end. Phil Jones continues to rebound well, getting eight.