UNC-Charlotte Fires Head 49ers Basketball Coach

CHARLOTTE, NC -- Mark Price, the head coach of the University of North Carolina - Charlotte’s 49ers basketball program, became a free agent Thursday after he was abruptly fired from the program he has led for more than two years. The news broke days after the team’s fourth straight loss.

In what the Charlotte Observer has called a “stunning move,” Price was called Thursday morning by college officials and given the news.

“I’m still stunned to be honest,” Price told the newspaper. “They said they didn’t like the direction of the program was taking and that I might have lost some of my players, which I don’t agree with. But we didn’t get quite as many wins as people wanted. That’s the reality of the business.”

The 49ers have a 3-6 record this season, and a 30-42 record during the course of Price’s tenure leading the program.

Price, the former shooting coach for the Charlotte Hornets, assumed the position in April 2015, signing a five-year contract with a $500,000 annual salary.

“Mark and (his wife) Laura have dedicated time and energy to strengthen our men’s basketball program,” UNC Charlotte chancellor Phil Dubois said in a statement, the newspaper reported. “It’s always difficult to part ways with such very fine people.”

Price was the program’s third coach in under seven years, with longtime coach Bobby Lutz receiving the axe in 2010 after failing to get the 49ers to the NCAA Tournament for five consecutive seasons, according to CBS Sports. Price was hired to replace Lutz’s successor, Alan Major, who spent five years at the helm, achieving a 67-70 record.

Charlotte 49ers assistant head coach, Houson Fancher, is set to assume the reins as interim head coach, according to the Observer.

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