WORCESTER, Mass. - Julius Hodge atoned for the lowest moment of his college career in a big way. Hodge had 19 points, nine assists and seven rebounds Friday to lead North Carolina State to a 75-63 victory over Charlotte in the first round of the Syracuse Regional.

North Carolina's Ilian Evtimov, center, puts up a shot over Charlotte's Chris Nance, as N.C. State's Cameron Bennerman, left, looks on during the second half of their first round NCAA tournament game at the DCU Center Friday, March 18, 2005 in Worcester, Mass. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

The 10th-seeded Wolfpack (20-13) play again Sunday against the winner of the defending national champion Connecticut-Central Florida game later Friday.

Andrew Brackman had 16 points, Ilian Evtimov and Cameron Bennerman each had 12 and Engin Atsur 10 for the Wolfpack, who limited the 49ers (21-8) to 38.1 percent shooting and shut down their perimeter game in the second half. All of Bennerman's points came after the break and while he was guarding hot-shooting Brendan Plavich.

Plavich, who led the nation with nearly four 3-pointers per game, was 5-for-7 from long range for 15 points in the first half but was held scoreless in the second, missing all three of his long-range attempts. Eddie Basden and Curtis Withers each scored 15 for the seventh-seeded 49ers and E.J. Drayton had 11.

A year ago in the NCAA tournament, Hodge was in tears after fouling out in a second-round game against Vanderbilt. And, it appeared his career would end on a sour note when the 49ers shot 60 percent in the first half and couldn't miss from beyond the arc in the early going.

North Carolina State, which trailed by 14 points less than five minutes into the game, gradually fought back in the second half. While Bennermen was frustrating Plavich, Hodge took over. Less than three minutes after scoring his 2,000th career point, Hodge converted a three-point play to pull the Wolfpack within 49-45 at 14:21.

Hodge then beat Basden, the two-time Conference USA defensive player of the year, along the baseline at 10:32 and, after Plavich threw up an airball, Bennerman hit a pull-up jumper to give the Wolfpack their first lead since Hodge scored the first basket of the game.

The 49ers never recovered. After Withers' free throw tied the game at 59 with 4:15 left, Hodge led a 16-4 closing run. Slapping the floor with his hands and shouting encouragement at his teammates, Hodge fed Bennerman for an easy layup, nabbed an offensive rebound to set up a 3-pointer from the top of the key by Evtimov, and fed Andrew Brackman for a fast-break dunk to give the Wolfpack an insurmountable 69-61 lead with 81 seconds left.

The game appeared as if it would become a rout at the outset. Plavich drained four straight 3s in the first nine minutes and the ball never touched nothing but net on every one. Basden tossed in another 3, and his basket with 11:29 left put the 49ers on top 23-9.

Six minutes into the game, Charlotte was 7-for-8 from the floor and led 18-9, and the Wolfpack had missed all five 3-pointers they had attempted.

Brackman scored six straight points to lead North Carolina State back on a 16-8 run as Charlotte finally began missing. A three-point play by Hodge narrowed the lead to 29-20, and a fast-break dunk by Gavin Grant off a turnover by Plavich at the top of the key had the Wolfpack within 31-25 with 3:31 left.

And when 6-foot-9 Cedric Simmons blocked a 3-point attempt by Plavich in the right corner, the Wolfpack stormed downcourt and Atsur's layup made it 31-27 with just over two minutes remaining.