1996–97 UNC Charlotte 49ers men's basketball team

The 1996–97 UNC Charlotte 49ers men's basketball team represented the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in the 1996–97 college basketball season. This was head coach Melvin Watkins's first of two seasons at the helm of his alma mater. The 49ers competed in Conference USA and played their home games at Dale F. Halton Arena. They finished the season 22–9 (10–4 in C-USA play) and received an at-large bid to the 1997 NCAA tournament as No. 7 seed in the West region. The 49ers defeated Georgetown in the opening round^[2] before losing to No. 2 seed Utah, 77–58, in the round of 32.^[3]

1996–97 UNC Charlotte 49ers men's basketball
NCAA tournament, Second round
Conference	Conference USA
Record	22–9 (10–4 C-USA)
Head coach	Melvin Watkins (1st season)
Home arena	Dale F. Halton Arena
Seasons ← 1995–96 1997–98 →

1996–97 Conference USA men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Blue
No. 10 Cincinnati	12	–	2		.857			26	–	8		.765
Marquette †	9	–	5		.643			22	–	9		.710
Saint Louis	4	–	10		.286			11	–	18		.379
DePaul	1	–	13		.071			3	–	23		.115
Red
Tulane	11	–	3		.786			20	–	11		.645
UAB	7	–	7		.500			18	–	14		.563
Southern Miss	6	–	8		.429			12	–	15		.444
South Florida	2	–	12		.143			8	–	19		.296
White
UNC Charlotte	10	–	4		.714			22	–	9		.710
Memphis	10	–	4		.714			16	–	15		.516
No. 25 Louisville	9	–	5		.643			26	–	9		.743
Houston	3	–	11		.214			11	–	16		.407
† 1997 Conference USA Tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll[1]

Roster

1996–97 Charlotte 49ers men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown F 4 DeMarco Johnson 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 245 lb (111 kg) Jr Charlotte, North Carolina G 5 Sean Colson 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jr Philadelphia, Pennsylvania F/C 33 DeMarco Johnson 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr Charlotte, North Carolina	Head coach Melvin Watkins Assistant coach(es) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

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Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	Site city, state
Regular season
Nov 26, 1996*		at Kent State	W 96–82	1–0	Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center  Kent, Ohio
Nov 30, 1996*		at Old Dominion	L 64–65	1–1	Norfolk Scope  Norfolk, Virginia
Dec 2, 1996*		Appalachian State	W 75–63	2–1	Dale F. Halton Arena  Charlotte, North Carolina
Dec 6, 1996*		South Carolina	L 60–75	2–2	Charlotte Coliseum  Charlotte, North Carolina
Dec 7, 1996*		USC	L 61–65	2–3	Charlotte Coliseum  Charlotte, North Carolina
Dec 14, 1996*		at Davidson	W 70–68	3–3	Belk Arena  Davidson, North Carolina
Dec 18, 1996*		Southern Illinois	W 71–62	4–3	Dale F. Halton Arena  Charlotte, North Carolina
Dec 21, 1996*		at Canisius	W 54–51	5–3	Koessler Athletic Center  Buffalo, New York
Dec 28, 1996*		Tennessee	W 72–51	6–3	Dale F. Halton Arena  Charlotte, North Carolina
Dec 30, 1996*		George Washington	W 76–69	7–3	Dale F. Halton Arena  Charlotte, North Carolina
Jan 4, 1997*		VMI	W 96–76	8–3	Dale F. Halton Arena  Charlotte, North Carolina
Jan 6, 1997		No. 14 Louisville	L 81–92	8–4 (0–1)	Dale F. Halton Arena  Charlotte, North Carolina
Jan 9, 1997		Memphis	W 71–65	9–4 (1–1)	Dale F. Halton Arena  Charlotte, North Carolina
Jan 11, 1997		Saint Louis	W 81–52	10–4 (2–1)	Dale F. Halton Arena  Charlotte, North Carolina
Jan 14, 1997		at South Florida	W 69–64	11–4 (3–1)	Sun Dome  Tampa, Florida
Jan 19, 1997		at Memphis	W 76–70	12–4 (4–1)	The Pyramid  Memphis, Tennessee
Jan 21, 1997		No. 9 Cincinnati	L 67–77	12–5 (4–2)	Dale F. Halton Arena  Charlotte, North Carolina
C-USA tournament
Mar 6, 1997*		vs. No. 20 Louisville Quarterfinals	W 64–60	20–7	Scottrade Center  St. Louis, Missouri
Mar 7, 1997*		vs. UAB Semifinals	W 67–65	21–7	Scottrade Center  St. Louis, Missouri
Mar 8, 1997*		vs. Marquette Championship game	L 52–60	21–8	Scottrade Center  St. Louis, Missouri
NCAA tournament
Mar 14, 1997* CBS	(7 W)	vs. (10 W) Georgetown Second round	W 79–67	22–8	McKale Center (12,958) Tucson, Arizona
Mar 16, 1997* CBS	(7 W)	vs. (2 W) No. 2 Utah Second round	L 58–77	22–9	McKale Center  Tucson, Arizona
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. W=West.

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Rankings

See also: 1996–97 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

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