In a matchup of one of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference's best men's basketball offenses in Tiffin and one of its best defenses in Hillsdale College, the defense won on Saturday.
The Chargers held a shorthanded Dragons squad to just 54 points, 26 below their season average entering the game, in a 66-54 victory.
At the other end of the floor, sophomore center Patrick Cartier dominated in the paint in his best game of the season to date, and one of the best of his career. Cartier scored 27 points, 17 coming in the firsh half, as Tiffin couldn't find an answer for the skilled Charger big man defensively.
Senior Davis Larson chipped in 13 points and six assists as well for the Chargers, who once again shared the ball extremely well, with 18 assists on their 28 made baskets in the contest.
Hillsdale seized control early in the contest, going on a 12-0 run in the first eight minutes of the game to break a 5-4 stalemate and take a double-digit lead. Although Tiffin played hard from that point on, and never truly let the Chargers pull away, Hillsdale kept the Dragons from ever getting back to a single-digit deficit or seriously threatening the Chargers' control of the game.
Led by Cartier, Hillsdale had a hefty advantage on points in the paint, outscoring the Dragons 38-24 inside the lane, and led by as many as 24 points in the second half.
Along with Cartier and Larson, the Chargers got seven points, six rebounds and three assists from senior Austen Yarian, six points and four assists from senior Connor Hill, and six points and four rebounds off the bench from sophomore Jack Gohlke.
Sophomore Tavon Brown added three points, nine rebounds and two steals as well for Hillsdale.
The Chargers improve to 7-1 overall and in the G-MAC with the victory, and remain tied for first place in the conference with Findlay, Walsh, and Ohio Dominican, who all did not play this weekend.
Hillsdale will look to keep pace with the other contenders as it hits the road to Nashville next week, to finish up the season series with Trevecca Nazarene on Thursday at 8:45 p.m. EST. The Chargers beat Trevecca 95-53 on Dec. 5, 2020 to open the season, but will likely face a tougher test on the road as the Trojans return several players who missed the first meeting between the two programs.
Photo: Patrick Cartier (#15). Photo by Camryn Olson.
