A stellar showing defensively helped Hillsdale win a critical 54-51 road battle at Thomas More on Saturday.
The Chargers, hungry for a road win that could pay major dividends in March when entry into the conference tournament is decided, held the host Saints to nearly 30 points below their season average and Thomas More's lowest point total of the season. The Saints shot just 33.3% from the floor and 26.3% from 3-point range.
Thomas More entered the game led by dangerous guard Kai Simpson, averaging 18 points per game. While Simpson got his points, finishing with 22, the Chargers held down nearly everyone else, with the rest of the team combined finishing with 29 and Thomas More's bench adding just seven.
Hillsdale helped itself by limiting its turnovers to just seven in the contest, leading to only three points off turnovers and one fast break point for the Saints. That forced Thomas More to execute in the half court, and Hillsdale got stops when it mattered most.
Despite the strong defensive performance, points also came at a premium for the Chargers against a tough Saints defense. In spite of that, Hillsdale held the lead for most of the game. Thomas More held the lead only briefly at the start of the game and Hillsdale never trailed in the second half.
A 7-0 run by the Saints late did tie the game at 47-all with 4:49 to play, but Hillsdale had great execution down the stretch, retaking the lead on a
Tommy Morgan and-one to go up 50-47, then getting uncontested baskets at the rim on back-to-back possessions from
Garrett Bolte and
CJ Yarian to go up by seven with 2:42 to go.
A 3-pointer by Thomas More's Daniel Allen cut Hillsdale's lead to 54-51 with 11 seconds to play, and after a turnover on the ensuing inbounds, the Chargers did have to come up with one more stop. Allen's desperation 3 at the buzzer didn't fall, however, giving Hillsdale the victory.
Morgan led a balanced Chargers effort offensively with 11 points, three rebounds, two assists and two blocks, and
Caleb Glaser chipped in 10 points and four rebounds on another solid night from the floor as well.
Braylon Morris added eight points off the bench for Hillsdale,
Cole McWhinnie chipped in seven points and four assists, and Garett Bolte added six points and a team-high 11 rebounds.
The Chargers are now 6-9 overall, 3-4 in the G-MAC and have moved ahead of Thomas More in the G-MAC standings with the victory. Hillsdale hosts Cedarville on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena looking to get on a winning streak.
