Jobey Thomas would likely have been offered a real job that paid real money last summer, but he had other plans. The Charlotte basketball player chose to take part in a 10-week mission project with Campus Outreach, a university ministry, and teach basketball to inner-city residents.

        The 6-foot-4 guard from a white middle-class Charlotte neighborhood lived in government subsidized housing. He shared a place with three other guys and resided among families with 10 to 12 kids living in one-bedroom apartments.

        “Life changing,” Thomas called the experience. “It humbles you. Kids who come from rough family situations — to see the difference in their life after working with them and see the excitement on their faces and their attitudes ... it really makes you stop and reflect on all that you have and what's most important in life.”

        The Charlotte 49ers play tonight at Shoemaker Center against the 10th-ranked University of Cincinnati, which has won all six of its previous Conference USA home openers and owns the nation's longest winning streak at 13 games.

        Thomas was named the league's Player of the Week on Monday after collecting 26 points and five rebounds in an upset of then-No. 25 Marquette on Saturday.

        He is the No.1 all-time 3-point shooter in C-USA history with 286 (UC senior Steve Logan is fifth with 213). Thomas was picked first-team all-league in the preseason coaches poll. During a tour to Europe with the NIT All-Stars late last summer, he averaged a team-high 17.8 points over five games.

        In May, he expects to receive his degree and get married. He earned a 4.0 grade-point average in the first semester. He hopes to play basketball professionally, then continue working with inner-city ministries.

        “He truly is special,” Charlotte coach Bobby Lutz said. “When I quit law school to get into coaching JV girls and boys high school, which is what I did, it was because my father was a coach and it was because of a chance to work with guys like Jobey Thomas. You hope to get guys like him all the time, but you don't find that many that can play at this level. He is as genuine as anybody I've ever been around. He's very sincere about everything he does.”

        That includes shooting the basketball. With the departures of freshman Rodney White, an NBA lottery pick, James Zimmerman, Diego Guevara and KenKay Jones, the 49ers went into this season counting on Thomas more than ever, not just as a scorer but as a leader.

        He always gave his all in practice, but leading by example wouldn't be enough. He would have to encourage and motivate teammates vocally, as well.

        “On the mission I learned some of those skills,” Thomas said. “I think it built my confidence. I was in charge of running basketball camps and really thinking for a number of people. I think that's what a leader is. Here, I can't worry about myself; I have to think about the team as a whole and what's best for us.”

        The 49ers have four players averaging in double figures, led by Thomas, who is averaging 18.5 points and shooting .425 from 3-point range.

        “He's the target of everyone's defense,” Lutz said. “People don't help off of him very much at all. He gets bumped and bruised and banged. Wherever he goes, someone's holding him, grabbing him, bumping him. And he handles that with great poise.

        “He's really developed into more than just a 3-point shooter. He's rebounding. His assist-to-turnover ratio is good. And you can't measure his heart and his leadership and what that does for our team.”

        Charlotte won 2 of 3 games against the Bearcats last season, including the Conference USA tournament final. The teams have split their last eight meetings, but UC is 6-0 all-time vs. the 49ers in Shoemaker Center.

        The Bearcats were picked in the preseason to win the American Division with Charlotte second.

UC climbs to No. 10 in AP poll Charlotte gunner strikes gold in inner city

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