Thirteen teams are headed to Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas for this week’s the American Athletic Conference Basketball Tournament, and coach Aaron Fearne and the 13th-seeded Charlotte 49ers enter with nothing to lose and everything to gain.
With victories coming few and far between in Fearne’s first full season as head coach, the 49ers haven’t been able to replicate the magic of last season, when Charlotte entered the AAC Tournament as the No. 3 seed.
This time around, Charlotte (10-21) has just three conference victories and would need a miracle to qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the first time in over 20 years. That miracle would need to start developing at 1 p.m. Wednesday in the tournament’s opening round against Rice, as Charlotte needs to score five victories in as many days to punch its ticket to the big dance.
“It hasn’t been as successful of a season as anyone would have liked, but you learn a lot along the way. You try and maximize your talent,” said Fearne. “The one thing I can’t fault this group on is their effort — it’s been outstanding. We’re excited for the (conference tournament).”
In what has been a down year for the AAC, featuring what will likely be a one-bid league in the NCAA Tournament — unless nationally ranked (No. 16) Memphis (16-2 AAC) is upset — a magical run is up for grabs. Charlotte was a victim of a Cinderella run a season ago when No. 11 Temple knocked the 49ers off and made a four-game run to the championship, laying out the blueprint for Fearne’s second-year Charlotte team.
Who can Charlotte count on?
Guard play wins in March, and Nik Graves’ aggressiveness must be on full display in Fort Worth if Charlotte is to advance. Graves’ production has increased by seven points per game since taking command of the offense in 2024-25 (17.6 points per game), shouldering the load with a team-high 34.2 minutes per game in his junior season.
Fearne has deployed eight different starting lineups this season in search of a winning formula, which has met with continuous struggles.
The 49ers’ forward combo of Robert Braswell IV and Giancarlo Rosado round out Charlotte’s double-digit scoring trio, with Rosado also leading the team in rebounds (5.9) and assists (3.4) per game.
Marred with the second-worst three-point percentage in the conference at 31.4%, Fearne and the 49ers will need streaky shooting performances from Graves, Braswell, as well as guards Kylan Blackmon and Jaeshon Thomas in Fort Worth to break their 9-year streak without a conference tournament victory.
Opening round matchup
Fittingly, Charlotte’s last conference tournament victory came back in the 2015-16 season in Conference USA against none other than the Rice Owls.
In what has been a tough season overall for Charlotte, the 49ers have won just one true road game this season (1-12) and are 1-1 in neutral site games. Charlotte split the season series with the Owls, losing by 13 in Houston and winning by three points in Halton Arena in February.
A win against No. 12 seed Rice would put the 49ers in the second round against No. 5 seed Florida Atlantic, who has defeated Charlotte twice this season. According to Fearne, it’s all about the details for this group of 49ers.
“What we’ve talked about the last three or four weeks is details. The game is about mistakes and who ultimately makes the least,” Fearne said ahead of the conference tournament. “For us to get across the line on Wednesday, we’ll have to have unbelievable attention to detail to give ourselves a chance to move on.”