A late-season non-conference game is rare in college basketball, men's or women's, but in 1996-97, Charlotte head women's basketball coach Ed Baldwin had one scheduled for his squad against Alabama February 18, 1997. It was the first season both programs moved into the on-campus Halton Arena.
The Crimson Tide, a contender in the SEC throughout the 1990s, came to the Queen City fresh off a victory at No. 10 Florida earlier in the week to climb to No. 6 in the national polls. They were one of the league's elite programs, along with Georgia and Tennessee.
The 49ers, however, caught them in the right place, at the right time.