Day-after observations from Charleston Southern victory

Observations from the Charlotte 49ers’ 68-58 season-opening men’s basketball victory Friday against Charleston Southern:

-- There was plenty of teeth-gnashing among 49ers fans when it was announced before the game that center Chris Braswell and guard DeMario Mayfield had been suspended for violating team rules (Mayfield will also miss Tuesday’s game against Georgia Southern). There was also a sense of déjà vu from two seasons ago, when coach Alan Major suspended two starters (Shamari Spears and An’Juan Wilderness) for the season opener and center Phil Jones for the season’s second game.

The difference here, of course, is that the 49ers lost to Gardner-Webb two seasons ago and they beat Charleston Southern on Friday.

Major has been consistent with his players in his now two-plus seasons in at least one area: Break a rule, pay the price. And I will never understand why a coach is criticized for that.

-- The 49ers’ 14-0 run in the first half against the Buccaneers was mostly about energy and enthusiasm from the team’s young players (with a 3-pointer by senior walk-on Colby Lewis thrown in for good measure). But just as impressive was how Charlotte managed a lead that reached as many as 18 points in the second half. Point guard Pierria Henry was key to that, playing a solid floor game (he had one turnover in the second half). Henry also defensively imposed his presence on the Bucs’ small backcourt of Saah Nimley and Arlon Harper with five steals (freshman Denzel Ingram also had four).

-- Freshmen forwards Willie Clayton (eight points, four rebounds) and Darion Clark (six and 11) are more athletic than some of Charlotte’s players in that spot in recent seasons. Clark, in particular, has a nose for the ball. He also showed some strong inside moves Friday. So did redshirt freshman center Mike Thorne, who helped plug the spot vacated by Braswell capably (four points, two rebounds in 15 minutes).

-- Sophomore Terrence Williams played a smart game, finding holes in Charleston Southern’s zone defense for a career-high 19 points. He also had 10 rebounds.

-- Major played Henry and Ingram together several times. Ingram, a scoring point guard in high school, handled the ball most of the time.

-- Braswell will be back Tuesday against Georgia Southern, as will senior J.T. Thompson (knees), who also didn’t play Friday. The Eagles game will start at 9 p.m. so it can be televised on the NBC Sports Network (which has time slots to fill because of the NHL lockout). It will be the second consecutive odd starting time for the 49ers. Friday’s game had a 6 p.m. tipoff, perhaps explaining why Halton Arena was less than half full (attendance was 4,429) for the season opener.

SOCCER

-- After Friday's 1-0 semifinals loss against Virginia Commonwealth, the 49ers will leave the Atlantic 10 without ever having won the league's men's soccer tournament.

Next up for the 49ers is the NCAA tournament. Bids will be announced Monday afternoon. The 49ers (14-3-3) probably have done enough to earn a seed and, with that, a first-round bye next Thursday. If that's the case, Charlotte would host a second-round game next Sunday (Nov. 17).