No. 3 Charlotte                 71  

No. 8 Eastern Kentucky   68

The Charlotte 49ers finished off their quest for a CBI Title defeating Eastern Kentucky 71-68. The 49ers came out shooting a red hot 72% from the field in the first half and held a 42-24 lead at the break. Aly Khalifa led the way for Charlotte scoring 20 points including 4 made three pointers. However, just as we’ve seen all CBI long Eastern Kentucky would make things interesting. Trailing by 20 with 11 minutes to play, Senior guard Cooper Robb went out with a fight against his former team, leading the comeback with some clutch threes down the stretch. EKU played without Devontae Blanton in the second half due to injury but still managed to cut the deficit to as little as one with :47 seconds remaining. Charlotte’s Isaiah Folkes made a key layup to put Charlotte up 71-68 and EKU got a great look from Tayshawn Comer at the buzzer that didn’t fall giving the 49ers the title. Charlotte’s Brice Williams was named Tournament MVP.

All Tournament Team

Brice Williams – Charlotte (MVP)

Devontae Blanton- Eastern Kentucky

Isaiah Cozart – Eastern Kentucky

Tevian Jones- Southern Utah

BJ Freeman- Milwaukee

New to the CBI for 2023:
The Gazelle Group will be distributing $40,000 of NIL funding (consistent with NCAA rules and relevant laws).  The NIL funding amounts will be distributed as follows:

Charlotte : $25,000

Eastern Kentucky: $10,000
Southern Utah and Radford: $2,500 each

About the Gazelle Group
The Gazelle Group is a sports marketing firm, specializing in event production and management, client representation, and sponsorship consulting. Gazelle produces numerous nationally-recognized college sports events, such as the Empire Classic, Legends Classic, the Gotham Classic, the Sunshine Slam, the College Basketball Invitational, the Kwik Trip Holiday Face-Off, the Barstool Sports Invitational as well as on-campus events at Duke, Kentucky, Nebraska and other institutions across the country. For more information on the Gazelle Group, please visit www.gazellegroup.com.

About Discount Tire
Discount Tire is a leading independent retailer of tires and wheels. Founded in 1960 by Bruce Halle, the company serves customers at more than 1,100 stores in 37 states. The company does business under the trade name Discount Tire in most of the U.S. and America’s Tire in parts of California. Discount Tire acquired Tire Rack, a direct-to-consumer tire retailer, and distributor, in 2021. Treadwell, Discount Tire’s proprietary online tire-buying guide, uses decades of data and individual driving habits to recommend the right tires for each driver’s unique needs. Discount Tire is a primary sponsor of the No. 2 Ford Mustang in the NASCAR Cup Series. For more information, visit www.discounttire.com.