The Hillsdale College men's basketball team is known for its methodical pace, but that doesn't mean the Chargers can't light up the scoreboard in a hurry when the situation calls for it.
Visiting Tiffin found that out the hard way in the Chargers' regular-season home finale on Thursday, as the Chargers blew past the Dragons 90-63 thanks to a devastating close of the first half offensively.
Hillsdale led just 27-24 over the Dragons with 7:57 to play in the first half, as an upset-minded Tiffin team was finding success knocking down outside shots early.
But the Chargers flipped the switch after the under-8 timeout, locking in at both ends of the floor and scoring 23 points in the final 7:11 of the period to turn a tight contest into a rout. Five different players scored for the Chargers during that stretch, and Hillsdale knocked down three 3-pointers in what would prove to be a knockout blow.
Hillsdale didn't give the Dragons a chance to get back in the game in the second half, opening the period how they ended the first half offensively and pushing the lead as high as 36 points before substituting late. The Chargers finished the contest shooting 57.1 percent from the floor and were 12 of 24 from 3-point range with a season-high 29 assists on 36 made baskets.
Junior Patrick Cartier had another huge game for the Chargers, going 9 of 11 from the floor for 23 points and four assists. Cartier now sits just five points away from reaching 1,500 for his career, with at least one more season in Charger blue and white remaining.
Jack Gohlke shot 50 percent from 3-point range and chipped in 15 points as well for the Chargers, while senior Tavon Brown, playing in what could be the final home game of his career, tied his career-high in points with 14 and just missed a double-double with nine rebounds and four assists.
Junior Kyle Goessler added 14 points as well for Hillsdale, while senior Austen Yarian had a strong all-around game in his potential final home contest, finishing with eight points, nine rebounds and six assists. Junior Cole Nau chipped in eight points and four assists as well.
The Chargers improve to 19-6 overall with the victory, 14-5 in the G-MAC, and keep the door open for a number of possibilities if they can pull off a road victory in the season finale against Ashland on Saturday. A win would give the Chargers back-to-back 20-win seasons for just the fifth time in school history, and also ensure they could finish no worse than second in the final G-MAC standings. On top of that, if Cedarville were to upset G-MAC-leading Walsh on the road on Saturday, a victory over the Eagles would clinch a share of the G-MAC regular season championship for the third straight year. Even with a loss, the lowest the Chargers could finish in the G-MAC standings at this point now is third, meaning Hillsdale will receive either a home game or a bye to the semifinals no matter what happens on Saturday.
Photo by Isabella Sheehan
