Throughout the 2019-20 season, the Charger men's basketball team has used ultra-tough defense to put itself in first place in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
Thursday night, this team showed it could score with the best of them too.
Shooting a lights-out 65 percent from the field, Hillsdale blitzed Tiffin University 95-71 in Ohio to improve to 9-5 overall and 5-0 in the G-MAC.
While the team was cooking as a unit on the offensive end, one player in particular flirted with history, continuing what is fast becoming a remarkable rookie season.
Freshman forward Patrick Cartier made his first 11 shots from the field. Although he missed his last one, he finished 11-for-12 from the floor for a game-high 24 points to go along with 7 rebounds in the win.
His .917 shooting percentage from the floor is the second-best mark in G-MAC history and the best shooting performance by any player in a conference game in the seven-year history of the G-MAC. His performance fell just short of the Hillsdale record of 10-for-10 from the field, set by Matt Mlynarchek back on January 30, 2003.
Over his past two games, Cartier, the reigning G-MAC Men's basketball player of the week, has made 21 out of 24 from the field. Those numbers are hard to come by on NBA2K, no matter the computer skill level, let alone in real life.
The Chargers gradually built a lead throughout the first half, and finished 20-for-29 from the floor as a team and 6-for-9 from the 3-point arc. While Cartier put up gaudy statistics, junior Austen Yarian wasn't far behind, registering his best game of the season.
Yarian posted a double-double, compiling 17 points and 13 rebounds, shooting 7-for-10 from the floor with a pair of 3-point baskets. He scored 14 of his points in the first half, where he did a great job of not forcing shots, and stepping up when the defense was giving him space.
All five starters scored in double figures, with senior guard Dylan Lowry lighting up the Dragons with 19 points and 7 assists, making all six of his free throws while swishing three 3-point baskets. Juniors Connor Hill and Davis Larson each picked up 10 points, with Larson pulling down 8 rebounds with 6 assists.
PHOTO: MaryKate Drews