CHARLOTTE, N.C. -Saint Louis freshman guard Tommie Liddell converted a lob at the end of the shot clock with 1:05 to play and the Billikens held off Charlotte 77-74 tonight in a battle for second place in the Atlantic 10 Conference at Halton Arena. Fellow SLU frosh guard Kevin Lisch poured in a game-high 20 points, and Liddell finished with 13 points and a game-high 12 rebounds as the Bills stretched their season-high winning streak to four.

"Our guys battled tonight to get a great win, and I just feel great for them," said Billikens head coach Brad Soderberg. "I thought that we were in trouble at the end of the first half, because we couldn't stop them. But Ian (Vouyoukas) was a man in the paint, and the freshmen keep doing the things that they've been doing. Anthony Drejaj also hit some big threes in the second half that kept our spirits up when it appeared that Charlotte might create some distance."

In a racehorse first half, Charlotte closed the final five minutes with a 16-5 run to take a 40-39 lead at the break. With the Billikens working the ball through junior center Ian Vouyoukas in the opening moments, the Bills scored the first four points on Luke Meyer's lay-up off a Vouyoukas assist and then a bucket from the Greek native.

The Bills took their biggest lead at 32-21 on Lisch's pull-up jumper, but Charlotte's De'Angelo Alexander immediately responded with a trey to cut the lead to eight. Charlotte reclaimed the lead 35-34 on guard Leemire Goldwire's triple at the 2:05 mark. SLU ran the clock down on the final possession of the half, and Liddell found Lisch open on the left wing for the freshman's third trey of the half as he finished the half with 13 points.

The 49ers opened a 47-42 lead to begin the second half on center Chris Nance's jumper, Charlotte enjoyed its largest lead of the game t 54-48 after another Goldwire triple. Trailing 56-52, the Billikens went on a 4-0 run to tie it as Lisch drained a jumper and Liddell buried two free throws. SLU gained its first lead of the second half 58-56 on another Lisch jump shot.

The lead changed hands three times as Charlotte climbed back on top 68-65 on Nance's tip in. The Bills answered with another Vouyoukas bucket to pull within one, but the 49ers' Goldwire buried another threeball for a 71-67 edge with 3:06 left. SLU's Drejaj knocked down a corner trey, and sophomore swingman Luke Meyer's tossed in two free throws after a rebounding foul on Charlotte All-American Curtis Withers to give SLU a 72-71 lead.

After Charlotte committed a turnover, Vouyoukas scored in close again for a 74-71 lead with 1:29 to play. Liddell hit 1-of-2 free throws at the 1:04 mark, and Charlotte's Alexander hit a clutch three under duress. That's when SLU designed an out-of-bounds play with two seconds left on the shot clock. From in front of the SLU bench, Drejaj in bounded and looked to Vouyoukas at the near block, but lobbed over him to Liddell flying to the rim for the lay-in. SLU led 77-74 with 21 ticks left.

"Drejaj's a risk-taker, so it's somewhat of a gamble to let him throw it in," Soderberg said. "But they made it work, so we all look pretty smart."

Charlotte's Alexander and Goldwire both misfired under pressure in attempts to send the game to OT, but SLU knocked the ball out of bounds chasing Goldwire's rebound. The 49ers got the ball on the right baseline with three seconds to play, but mishandled the ball on the inbounds and time ran out as the scramble ensued on the floor.

Withers led Charlotte (17-10, 10-4) with 19 points, seven rebounds and a game-high six assists, while Alexander finished with 18. The 49ers shot 42.9 percent from the field, 36.4 percent from the arc and 72.7 percent from the free throw line.

SLU shot a sizzling 52.8 percent from the floor and a red-hot 61.5 percent from the arc to finish with five players in double figures. Vouyoukas added 16 points, Drejaj contributed 13 points and Luke Meyer's tossed in 10. The Bills barely out-rebounded the bigger 49ers 33-32. Liddell had a team-high five assists as the Bills had 19 assists and only eight turnovers.

With the victory, SLU clinched a first-round bye in the A-10 Tournament. Saint Louis (16-10, 10-4) hosts Dayton on Wed., March 1, at 7 p.m. (CT).