Middle Tennessee beats Charlotte 79-61 in C-USA tourney

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) Reggie Upshaw had 17 of his 27 points in the second half Thursday night and Middle Tennessee beat Charlotte 79-61 in the Conference USA tournament quarterfinals.

Perrin Buford added 22 points and Giddy Potts scored 18 for the No. 2 seed Blue Raiders (22-9), who advanced to a semifinal matchup against third-seeded Marshall on Friday.

Middle Tennessee had a 27-2 run that spanned both halves and ended when Buford's jumper made it 54-38 with 11:31 left in the second half. The Blue Raiders led by double digits the rest of the way.

The seventh-seeded 49ers (14-19) pulled away first with a 13-3 run to lead 36-27 with 1:12 left in the first half. But they missed 13 of their next 14 shots while the Blue Raiders took control with their run.

Braxton Ogbueze had 21 points, Jon Davis scored 12 and Curran Scott 10 for Charlotte.