Charger men's basketball freshman forward Patrick Cartier got his first introduction to the classic Hillsdale-Findlay rivalry.
Consider that first test passed. With flying colors.
Cartier scored a career-high 24 points, shooting 10-for-13 from the floor in a 77-65 Charger win over the Oilers Saturday afternoon at the Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena. The win, Hillsdale's third straight, makes it 6-4 overall and 3-0 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
Playing an exceptionally smart game, Cartier and his teammates exploited every opening the Findlay defense gave them, moving the ball, staying patient, and in Cartier's case, moving expertly without the ball. He was the recipient of a number of nice passes from his teammates that led to easy layups. It was coach John Tharp's offense working exactly as intended - constant movement, responsible ballhandling, and striking at just the right time for the high-percentage shot. It was a terrific all-around performance for Hillsdale against its biggest conference rival.
The Chargers opened the game sharp, playing with energy, shooting well over 50 percent through the game's first 15 minutes, building a fast double-digit lead. But the team went cold over the last four minutes of the half, and went into intermission with a 32-25 lead.
That seven-point lead quickly became three, as Findlay scored easy baskets on its first two possessions. But that's as close as the Oilers would get, as the Chargers did a terrific job of making shots at crucial times, to thwart any momentum Findlay tried to build. If the Oilers were within five, it was a baseline jumper by Connor Hill, extending the lead back to seven. Or it was a Davis Larson 3-pointer - he had four of them in the game - to keep the energy and production up on the Hillsdale side throughout the second half.
Hill played one of his best games, finishing with 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field. He was particularly effective along the baseline, making a handful of jumpers while draining one nice reverse layup, reading the defense well.
Larson had 17 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists, going 4-for-6 from beyond the 3-point arc. Dylan Lowry added 10 points and 3 assists to the Charger victory.
Cartier registered a double-double in his first game against Findlay with 24 points and 10 rebounds, eight of those boards coming on the defensive end.
PHOTO: MaryKate Drews