There was nothing easy about the Hillsdale College men's basketball team's 75-65 victory over Ashland on Saturday.
Playing on the road against a team that had gotten the better of them in Hillsdale on Jan. 13, the Chargers saw a 15-point second-half lead evaporate under a devastating rally by the experienced and determined Eagles, who cut Hillsdale's lead to just three points, 65-62 with five minutes to play.
But rather than fold under the pressure, the Chargers kept their composure, fending off every Ashland attempt to tie the game, answering every Eagles basket with one of their own down the stretch, and gritting out a hard-fought victory to close out the regular season.
The prize for Hillsdale is a coveted one -- a second-place finish in the rugged G-MAC and a bye into the semifinal round of the upcoming G-MAC Tournament. It also gave Hillsdale its 20th victory of the season, marking just the fifth time in school history that the Chargers have reached the 20 win mark in back-to-back campaigns.
Hillsdale started the game on a tear, determined to avenge their 53-52 defeat at the Eagles' hands back in January. The Chargers scored 39 first-half points on the G-MAC's top scoring defense, using a balanced, unselfish attack that kept Ashland out of its comfort zone. The Chargers kept the pressure on in the second half, outscoring the Eagles 9-4 in the first five minutes of the period to take its largest lead of the game.
Ashland battled back with relentless pressure, led by star guard Brandon Haraway, repeatedly cutting the Charger lead to one possession down the stretch. Juniors Patrick Cartier and Kyle Goessler and freshman Joe Reuter answered the call down the stretch for Hillsdale, matching Ashland bucket-for-bucket and going 4 of 5 from the line in the final 67 seconds to seal the victory.
Cartier had one of his best games of the season for Hillsdale, putting up 20 points and seven rebounds against one of the top defensive front-lines in the G-MAC to lead the Chargers. Goessler chipped in 17 points, and senior Austen Yarian added 14 points, seven assists and five rebounds as well in a sensational all-around performance. Reuter, the X-factor in several Hillsdale wins in the second half of the season, chipped in 11 points and five rebounds off the bench, and Jack Gohlke added six points and four rebounds for the Chargers.
Hillsdale won decisively on both ends of the floor, hitting 60.8% of their shots and holding Ashland to just 43.9% from the floor. Only 14 Hillsdale turnovers, turned into 20 points, kept the Eagles in the game. The Chargers also had a huge edge on the glass, out-rebounding Ashland 32-21, and assisted on 17 of their made baskets to Ashland's nine.
As mentioned above, the Chargers receive an automatic bye to the semifinal round of next week's G-MAC tournament, hosted by regular season champion Walsh. The Chargers will play in the second semifinal on Friday, March 5 at 7:30 p.m., against the winner of Tuesday's quarterfinal contest between the Eagles, who are the three seed, and Cedarville, which is seeded sixth. Hillsdale will be looking for just its second conference tournament title in program history this weekend, and the automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament that comes with it.
Photo by Anthony Lupi