GAME NOTES: The College of Charleston shoots for a fourth straight win on Tuesday night, as the Cougars clash with the Charlotte 49ers in non-conference action at Halton Arena.

Since losing to 21st-ranked West Virginia late last month in Morgantown, the Cougars have rattled off three consecutive victories. Winners of four of the last five overall, Charleston's latest triumph was a 58-47 decision over Campbell on Sunday at TD Arena.

Meanwhile, the 49ers are hoping to put an end to a two-game slide when they take the floor at home. Charlotte has actually dropped four of the last five outings, with the lone win during that stretch coming in overtime versus UNC Asheville at the end of last month.

The 49ers are a well-rested bunch who last took the floor on Dec. 7 versus George Washington, and outing that resulted in a 78-70 defeat.

Charlotte leads the all-time series by a count of 11-9, although the Cougars won the most recent meeting last season at home by a score of 83-82.

Going up against Campbell, the Cougars allowed just nine made field goals in the first half and the same number after the break, not to mention a mere 4- of-22 showing out behind the 3-point line, making it that much easier for the hosts to come away with the win. Joe Chealey accounted for a team-best 18 points, adding six rebounds and four assists, followed by Canyon Barry and Anthony Stitt with 14 and 12 points, respectively.

Despite shooting only 36.5 percent from the field through the first nine games, Barry finds himself as the top overall scorer for Charleston with his 10.2 ppg, although Stitt is not that far behind with 10.0 ppg. However, like Barry, Stitt has had his problems from the floor (.370) and is also struggling both beyond the arc (.297) and at the free-throw line (.611), but has made up for some of those poor efforts with 27 assists. Then again, Stitt does have more turnovers (32) than dishes which is the case for the Cougars overall.

In a game that featured six ties and five lead changes, the 49ers shot only 39.4 percent from the floor and were outscored 15-6 at the free-throw line, just enough to send them to the loss column versus George Washington. Braxton Ogbueze stepped up and produced a game-high 27 points on 11-of-17 shooting from the field, including 4-of-8 beyond the arc, but it simply wasn't enough. Pierria Henry added 13 points and Willie Clayton 14 rebounds in defeat as well.

Henry, who now needs just eight points to become the newest member of the 1,000-point club at Charlotte, is currently third for third on the team's season scoring list with 10.1 ppg, matching Torin Dorn who comes off the bench exclusively for Charlotte. At the top of the chart is Ogbueze with his 14.1 ppg, followed by Mike Thorne with 12.8 ppg, to go along with 8.8 rpg. However, as well as Thorne may play in the paint with the clock running, his efforts at the free-throw line (.410) can make him a liability in crucial situations.

Hitting the road is never easy for teams and it tends to count against them when it comes to their energy level and preparation, so don't be surprised if the Cougars come out flat in this contest before grabbing the win.