1996–97 UNC Charlotte 49ers men's basketball team

1996–97 UNC Charlotte 49ers men's basketball
ConferenceConference USA
Record22–9 (10–4 C-USA)
Head coach
Home arenaDale F. Halton Arena
1996–97 Conference USA men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Blue
No. 10 Cincinnati 12 2   .857 26 8   .765
Marquette 9 5   .643 22 9   .710
Saint Louis 4 10   .286 11 18   .379
DePaul 1 13   .071 3 23   .115
Red
Tulane 11 3   .786 20 11   .645
UAB 7 7   .500 18 14   .563
Southern Miss 6 8   .429 12 15   .444
South Florida 2 12   .143 8 19   .296
White
UNC Charlotte 10 4   .714 22 9   .710
Memphis 10 4   .714 16 15   .516
No. 25 Louisville 9 5   .643 26 9   .743
Houston 3 11   .214 11 16   .407
1997 Conference USA Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1996–97 UNC Charlotte 49ers men's basketball team represented the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in the 1996–97 college basketball season. This was head coach Melvin Watkins's first of two seasons at the helm of his alma mater. The 49ers competed in Conference USA and played their home games at Dale F. Halton Arena. They finished the season 22–9 (10–4 in C-USA play) and received an at-large bid to the 1997 NCAA tournament as No. 7 seed in the West region. The 49ers defeated Georgetown in the opening round before losing to No. 2 seed Utah, 77–58, in the round of 32.