A fast start wasn't enough for the 20th-ranked Hillsdale College men's basketball team on the road on Saturday, as the Chargers fell to Lake Erie in the closing seconds, 69-67, in their first G-MAC loss of the season.

Hillsdale came roaring out the gates in the contest, building a double-digit lead in the first five minutes thanks to three early 3-pointers and strong play in transition against Lake Erie's full-court press. The Chargers led by as many as 17 points with 6:30 to play in the half, but the Storm chipped away at that lead, cutting it to a 37-30 deficit at halftime.

The Chargers momentarily regained the upper hand to start the second half, pushing their advantage back to 11 with 13 and a half minutes to play, but turnovers started to mount for Hillsdale against the press, and Lake Erie erased the deficit, tying the game at 51-all with 10 and a half minutes to go. 

From there, the two teams traded the lead back and forth, with neither team leading by more than three points to the final buzzer in a frantic finish. Hillsdale pulled ahead 67-66 on an Eric Radisevic post up with 52 seconds to play, but Lake Erie answered at the other end to retake the lead with 37 seconds to go and the Chargers couldn't convert two chances to pull back in front, including a potential go-ahead 3-pointer at the buzzer.

Hillsdale couldn't overcome a cold second half, especially from deep, as Hillsdale was 3 for 4 from 3-point range in their fast start but just 3 for 13 the rest of the way, including 1 for 6 in the second half, and lost the rebounding battle 36-27, conceding 18 offensive rebounds to the Storm and giving up 12 second chance points. The Chargers also had uncharacteristic struggles from the free throw line, shooting just 11 of 18 from the charity stripe, below the team's usual percentage and a critical factor in a game decided by two points.

Charles Woodhams led Hillsdale with 16 points and four rebounds, and Radisevic had a big night on the road as well, shooting 6 of 8 from the floor to finish with 15 points. Joe Reuter chipped in 10 points and eight rebounds, Ashton Janowski added nine points and Mikey McCollum finished with eight points and five rebounds off the bench.

The Chargers are now 15-3 overall, 9-1 in G-MAC play and will have to move past this loss quickly as Hillsdale next welcomes arch-rival Findlay to Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena on Saturday, Jan. 25 at 3 p.m. The Oilers now lead the G-MAC with a perfect 9-0 record thanks to Hillsdale's loss, and will enter next week's contest ranked in the top 10 in the nation. Hillsdale remains in the hunt for the G-MAC title but can't afford to fall at home and fall two games behind Findlay in the standings, making the meeting between the two teams a high-stakes one indeed.

Photo by Chris Corso