2020-21 CoSIDA Men's Basketball Academic All-District Teams
As the Hillsdale College men's basketball team's first consensus All-American in the NCAA Division II era, there's no denying what sophomore Patrick Cartier can do on the basketball court.
But there's more to Cartier than his basketball talent, as his latest honor earned today from the Collegiate Sports Information Directors of America shows.
Cartier became the first Hillsdale College men's basketball player to earn CoSIDA Academic All-District Honors since Kyle Cooper was named Academic All-American of the Year by the organization in 2016.
The sophomore from Brookfield, Wisconsin was one of five players selected to represent District 4 at the NCAA Division II level, along with Conley Garrison of Drury, Curtis Lewis of Rockhurst, Chase Robinson of Illinois-Springfield and Owen White of Michigan Tech.
Cartier played at an All-American level in 2020-21, earning that honor from both the National Association of Basketball Coaches and the Division II Conference Commissioners Association, as well as Player of the Year honors in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
The sophomore led the G-MAC in scoring with 20.5 points per game and also topped the G-MAC in field goal percentage with 65.1%, while finishing eighth in free-throw shooting percentage (77.7%) and 12th in rebounds per game (6.2).
The big man from Brookfield, Wisconsin scored in double-figures in all 24 games he played in for the Chargers, with 14 20-plus point games and five double-doubles. He saved his biggest games for crucial moments, scoring 30 points in an 83-79 double-overtime win over Cedarville, a career-high 32 points to stave off an upset on the road at Tiffin in an 85-83 win, and 29 points on 10 of 12 shooting from the floor in the team's historic NCAA tourney win over Mercyhurst that propelled the Chargers to the Sweet 16.
Cartier's efficiency from the floor was unmatched in the nation in Division II, and unprecedented in the history of the Hillsdale College basketball program. His 65.1% field goal percentage is seventh-best in Division II, and that's with nearly twice as many shot attempts on the season as anyone ahead of him on the list.
The sophomore's career field goal percentage of 64.7% is also the best in program history by over 3 percentage points, surpassing Charger legend Tim Kissman's mark of 61.2% set from 1990 to 1994. At 943 points for his career, Cartier should become the 39th Charger to surpass the 1,000-point mark early next season, and, if he keeps his production up and stays healthy over the next two years, has a very real chance to threaten Hillsdale's all-time career points mark of 2,174 held by Charger Hall of Famer Eric Allaire ('89).
Cartier also has excelled in the classroom over his two seasons in the Charger blue and white, posting a 3.39 GPA in his time at Hillsdale while earning Academic All-G-MAC honors in both seasons at Hillsdale. A psychology major, Cartier has been an important part of a team that earned the NABC Team Academic Excellence Award for the 2019-20 season and should do so again for the 2020-21 season when that award is announced later this summer.
As an All-District honoree, Cartier is one of 40 Division II men's basketball players who are under consideration for CoSIDA Academic All-American honors. 15 All-Americans will be chosen from the 40 All-District winners and the selections will be announced on May 27.
Photo by Anthony Lupi