CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -Freshman center Chris Braswell stepped up twice down the stretch as Charlotte held off St. Bonaventure 57-54 in its Atlantic 10 Conference opener on Saturday night.
Braswell's driving layup with 1:30 remaining gave the 49ers the lead for good at 55-54. He then drew an offensive foul from St. Bonaventure's Jonathan Hall with 2.7 seconds remaining.
Charlie Dewhurst hit two free throws with 1.9 seconds left to push the final margin to three.
Shamari Spears led Charlotte (11-4) with 18 points and nine rebounds. Derrio Green scored 15 and Braswell finished with nine points and 14 rebounds.
Chris Matthews led St. Bonaventure (7-8, 0-2) with 17 points. Andrew Nicholson finished with 11 rebounds but was held to six points, 11 below his average.
