ROSEMONT, Ill. (AP) -- North Carolina-Charlotte held Quentin Richardson in check for the first half Saturday with a chasing box-and-one defense.

So the DePaul star moved his game inside where he's always been so comfortable.

"I've always had confidence on the baseline, I've always been able to play that position. I don't think it's something I'll ever lose," Richardson said after scoring the game's final seven points, including the go-ahead tip-in with 38 seconds left, as No. 23 DePaul rallied for a 77-75 win.

"When I feel like I got a groove going, I'm gonna stick with it," Richardson added.

Richardson finished with 32 points -- 23 in the second half -- on 13-for-18 shooting and also had 10 rebounds for the Blue Demons (11-3, 2-0 in Conference USA). Bobby Simmons added 19 points for DePaul, while Rashon Burno had 14 assists and 7-foot freshman center Steven Hunter six blocks.

"I'm amazed he had 32 points," DePaul coach Pat Kennedy said of Richardson. "I'm just so used to watching Q. We just tried to keep him on the baseline because that's where he's the most effective."

Charlotte (7-7, 0-2), which had beaten DePaul five straight times, was playing its seventh straight road game and finished the trip with two wins. The 49ers haven't played a home game since Dec. 11.

Jobey Thomas scored 17 points and James Zimmerman and Diego Guevara 15 each for the 49ers.

Guevara, who didn't start because of a sprained toe, hit a pair of 3-pointers, the final one with 3:26 left, to give Charlotte a 75-70 lead. It turned out to be the 49ers' final points.

Richardson answered with a 3-pointer and then got free for a game-tying basket break with 2:48 left.

Charlotte missed a shot to take the lead. Burno misfired on a 3-pointer and after Richardson missed on his first follow, he scored on his second try.

Charlotte then had two chances to tie, but Guevara and Zimmerman missed jumpers and the 49ers fouled Paul McPherson with 2.4 seconds to go. McPherson missed the free throw, but Charlotte couldn't get off a good shot before the buzzer.

"Obviously we couldn't handle Richardson," Charlotte coach Bobby Lutz said.

"It wasn't like our guys weren't trying. He's obviously shooting from the perimeter more than he did a year ago. But he has got that unbelievable instinct for getting rebounds. He had that last year. He has that knack for where he needs to be and he's just quick off his feet."

Thomas had 11 points in the first half and Guevara's 3-pointer with seven seconds left gave the 49ers a 39-36 lead.

Charlotte hit 14-of-30 attempts on 3-pointers.

"We scored enough to win. We were just unable to stop them," Lutz said.