A historic run for the Hillsdale College men's basketball team ended in the Atlantic Regional Final on Tuesday night.
The Chargers battled hard against an excellent West Liberty team playing on its home court, but couldn't overcome an early second-half run that let the Hilltoppers pull away for a 78-61 victory.
Hillsdale hung close with the Hilltoppers in the first half, overcoming an early 3-point barrage by West Liberty to trail just 39-33 at halftime. Balanced scoring helped the Chargers overcome a physical and aggressive Hilltopper defense that gave the Chargers problems both full-court and half-court.
But Hillsdale lost control of the game at the start of the second half, as the Hilltoppers came out on fire and the Chargers came out cold in the first eight minutes of the period. West Liberty used a 20-6 run during that stretch to push the lead to just shy of 20 points. Hillsdale cut into the deficit repeatedly over the final 12 minutes of the game, closing to within 10 multiple times and threatening to get back into the contest, but couldn't string together the baskets it needed to really threaten West Liberty late.
Hillsdale shot 43.1 percent from the floor and an uncharacteristic 7 of 18 from the line. Those missed free throws, including multiple misses on the front end of one and ones, kept the Chargers from making a real second half push.
Four players finished in double figures for the Chargers. In the final game of an excellent career, Connor Hill shined for Hillsdale, leading the Chargers in scoring with 15 points and four assists and finishing with just two turnovers against constant West Liberty pressure. Fellow graduating senior Davis Larson also had a strong final outing, finishing with 12 points and three assists of his own.
Austen Yarian chipped in 14 points, eight rebounds and four assists for the Chargers, and Patrick Cartier added 10 points and eight rebounds as well.
The defeat is a bitter end to the Chargers' season, but it doesn't overshadow a historic campaign that ranks among the best in Hillsdale history. The Chargers set a school record for winning percentage in a season, finishing at 21-3 overall, captured a second straight Great Midwest Athletic Conference regular season crown, and won their first NCAA Tournament game in 20 years. By beating Mercyhurst 67-48, Hillsdale reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Division II tournament for the first time in school history.
While Hill and Larson won't be easily replaced, both as critical rotation players and team leaders, Hillsdale should be a strong team once again in 2021-22, with three starters slated to return and a strong class of incoming freshmen to try and continue a magical run for a third straight year for the Chargers.
Photo by Gwen Buchhop