KenKay Jones and the 49ers are a step ahead of the Vols in Friday's first-round game.(AP)

Jobey Thomas scored Charlotte's last six points, including four free throws in the final 25 seconds, as the 49ers beat Tennessee 70-63 Friday in the first round of the Midwest Regional.

The game might have been the last at Tennessee for coach Jerry Green, whose job reportedly is in jeopardy despite 20-win seasons and trips to the NCAA Tournament in each of his four seasons.

The loss was a continuation of the swoon that had hit the Volunteers. They won 16 of their first 17 games -- rising to No. 4 in the polls -- before losing eight of the next 10. They lost in the quarterfinals of last week's SEC Tournament.

"I think this is as unusual a season as I've ever spent in my 30-some odd years in coaching because almost everybody was playing well early then we hit a streak where we get an injury and a few people not playing well," Green said. "Then we get it back together and really think we've got it in line. There have been some inconsistencies as we've gone along."

Foul trouble and foul shooting were the deciding factors. The Vols (22-11) had three starters finish with four fouls each. At the line, they hit just seven of 18 shots -- including one of seven in the second half.

Ninth-seeded Charlotte (22-10) will make its fourth trip to the second round in five years when it plays top-seeded Illinois, a 96-54 victor over Northwestern State in an earlier game.

"We get to play another day," Charlotte coach Bobby Lutz said. "I think we're a much improved defensive team and I think in the second half we showed that. We went all man-to-man. We challenged our team at halftime to dig in and try to guard them and we responded."

Tennessee missed all six of its shots from the field and had four turnovers in the first 4½ minutes of the second half.

"We came out kind of lackluster and I think that cost us the game," said Vincent Yarbrough, who led the Vols with 12 points.

Charlotte regrouped to score 14 of the next 19 points -- four apiece by Butter Johnson and Conference USA freshman of the year Rodney White --to build a 59-50 lead with just under seven minutes remaining.

Tennessee got within 61-58 on Ron Slay's half-hook from the right baseline with 4:28 left, but every time the Vols scored the 49ers answered. James Zimmerman followed Slay's basket with a 3-pointer.

Tony Harris looped a shot over the outstretched arm of White for a basket with 2:56 left that cut the Charlotte lead to 64-60 before Thomas banked in an off-balance shot from the right wing to push the lead back to six.

Yarbrough hit a perimeter jumper and a foul shot -- the Vols had missed their previous seven free throws, including the first of three bonus situations -- to cut the deficit to 66-63 with 1:18 left.

Thomas hit a pair of free throws with 24.8 seconds left and again with 11.2 seconds remaining, while Tennessee missed its final three shots over the last minute.

"We've been a pretty good free-throw shooting team most of the year, but we sure didn't do it today," Green said. "Again, you get shots and you don't make them. You get free throws and you don't make them. Then the other guy does -- that's what this season and this game are all about."

Thomas and White each scored 12 points for the 49ers, tournament champions of Conference USA. The victory was Charlotte's sixth in a row and 10th in its last 11.

Tennessee -- which also got 10 points from Marcus Haislip -- shot 41.7 percent from the field.

Tennessee's Slay sat in a quiet locker room, playing with the scissors with which he had just cut off his ankle tape.

"I never expected that in the first round," he said. "I didn't think we were going to lose, even with three seconds left. It just happened that way."