Kadji Notches Double-Double in Canes' 76-61 Win

Box Score | Season Stats

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) –– Kenny Kadji scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Miami pulled away in the second half to beat Charlotte 76-61 on Thursday night.

Durand Scott added 14 points and Reggie Johnson and Rion Brown added 11 each for the Hurricanes (7-4), who made up for the absence of leading scorer Malcolm Grant by shooting 54 percent (27 of 50) from the field and hitting 8 of 19 3-pointers.

All-ACC guard Grant was out of the lineup due to a death in his family.

Charlotte (7-3) managed to keep things close early, leading twice in the first five minutes – the last at 9-6 on two Braswell free throws with 14:53 to go in the first half. It then tied it at 18 on K.J. Sherrill’s free throw with 8:02 left until halftime.

The Hurricanes then took the lead on Trey McKinney Jones’ 3-pointer from the corner. Miami then closed out the half on a 13-6 run to lead 31-24 at the break.

The 49ers opened the second half with a 12-6 run, capped by Derrio Green’s 3-pointer with 16:24 left in the second half, to cut the Hurricanes’ lead to 37-36.

However, Miami responded by hitting five straight 3s – two by Kadji – during a 21-10 run to push its lead to 60-43 with 8:06 remaining.

Charlotte got no closer than nine points the rest of the way.

Chris Braswell finished with 12 points for the 49ers, who shot just 32.2 percent (19 of 59) – including 8 of 23 on 3-pointers, in snapping their five-game winning streak.

Game Notes
– Starters for the game were Shane Larkin, Durand Scott, Trey McKinney Jones, Kenny Kadji and Reggie Johnson. This was the first time Coach Larranaga used this starting lineup.
– Johnson made his first start of the season against the 49ers, the 41st of his career.
– Larking made his first start since the game against Memphis on Dec. 6.
– Malcolm Grant left Charlotte prior to the game to tend to an urgent family matter and did not play in the game.
– Senior DeQuan Jones made his season debut in the game against Charlotte. Jones’ first points were a three-point play, as he was fouled on a layup then made the free throw. Jones ended the night with seven points, six rebounds and a block.
– Kenny Kadji recorded Miami’s first double-double of the season with 18 points and 10 rebounds. The game marked his fourth-straight double-digit scoring night. He was 7-of-9 from the field, including 2-of-3 from distance. Kadji also recorded a pair of blocks in 32 minutes.
– Kadji has hit eight three pointers in the past three games, including two against Charlotte. Kadji also had a three-point play against the 49ers.
– Rion Brown drained a trio of three pointers, increasing his total to seven treys in the past two games. Brown ended the game with 11 points.
– Trey McKinney Jones posted his seventh game with multiple three-pointers, hitting a pair against Charlotte on his way to seven points.
– All seven guys who played more than 17 minutes scored at least seven points in the game.
– The Canes have shot better than 50 percent in back-to-back games, shooting 54 percent (27-50) at Charlotte and 62 percent (31-50) against FAU.
– Miami also shot better than 40 percent from distance in those two games hitting 8-of-19 (42.1%) at Charlotte and 14-of-20 (70%) vs. FAU.
– UM shot better than 70 percent at the free throw line for the first time since the game against UMass. Against the 49ers, Miami was 14-of-18 (77.8%) and vs. the Minutemen, the Canes were 27-of-36 (75%).
– Miami is now 3-4 overall against Charlotte.