After posting his best game of the season on Saturday against Tiffin, Hillsdale College sophomore Patrick Cartier has once again earned an individual honor from the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
On Tuesday, the G-MAC office announced that Cartier had been named the conference men's basketball Athlete of the Week for the week of Jan. 11-17. It's the second time this season the sophomore has earned this honor, and the fourth time in his career.
Cartier was excellent from the jump against the Dragons on Saturday at Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena, winning the tip and scoring 17 first-half points to help the Chargers take a double-digit lead into halftime.
In the second half, Cartier continued to produce to help Hillsdale hold off a late Tiffin run, finishing with 27 points and five rebounds in the victory on 12-of-17 shooting. That 27-point performance is one point off his career high of 28 set against Lake Erie on Jan. 4, 2020.
The sophomore put his full arsenal on display on Saturday, scoring on layups and hook shots, hitting a 3-pointer and finishing two emphatic dunks – one on a baseline drive and the other in transition after a steal and an outlet pass by teammate Connor Hill.
The G-MAC Freshman of the Year in 2019-20, Cartier has scored in double figures in every contest so far in 2020-21, including back-to-back 20-plus point games on Dec. 17 and 19 that earned him his first Player of the Week honor of the season.
A year and a half into his career, Cartier is averaging 16.2 points per game and shooting 63 percent from the floor in 36 appearances in a Charger uniform.
Cartier and the 7-1 Chargers hit the road this week and will be in action next against Trevecca Nazarene on Thursday at 7:45 p.m. Central Time.
Photo by Anthony Lupi