The Hillsdale College men’s basketball team dropped two games last weekend at Northwood and Lake Superior State by identical scores, 74-69.
The Chargers now sit with an 8-6 record overall and a 6-4 record in GLIAC play.
On Saturday at Lake Superior State, the Chargers shot 56 percent from the field but committed 17 turnovers to the Lakers’ four, leading to 19 Laker points.
“We just turned the ball over way too much,” head coach John Tharp said. “It’s leading to defeats right now so we just have to pass and catch better and we have to have more certainty with our offensive movement.”
Turnovers were also a problem for the Chargers in Thursday’s contest at Northwood, especially during the first half.
“We as a team have got to do better [taking care of the ball],” point guard Zach Miller said. “We shot the ball pretty well but when you’re shooting well you’ve got to get shots up and you’ve got to do that with the ball.”
Nine of Hillsdale’s 11 turnovers came before intermission, allowing the Timberwolves to score easy buckets in transition.
“We were giving up easy points,” forward Kyle Cooper said. “When you’re coming down in a game where it’s a four or five point margin a couple of possessions like that can really make a difference.”
The Timberwolves held Cooper to just 11 points and 10 rebounds, but Hillsdale’s leading scorer responded with a 21-point performance against the Lakers.
Center Jason Pretzer started Saturday’s game at Lake Superior State after a strong showing at Northwood. The 7-foot junior scored 23 points off the bench on 9-14 shooting in Thursday’s loss to the Timberwolves, prompting Tharp to move him into the starting lineup on Saturday.
“Jason was magnificent offensively on Thursday and he really gave us some great scoring in the post and on the perimeter,” Tharp said. “We started Jason on Saturday and I thought Nick Archer came off the bench and played really well as well so the truth of the matter is that one of those two guys needs to give us great minutes.”
Pretzer will continue to start games according to Tharp.
The two consecutive losses means the Chargers are currently in the midst of a three-game skid after falling at home to Findlay on January 10.
Over Christmas break, the Chargers enjoyed a four-game winning streak in league play with back-to-back non-conference losses at a Christmas tournament in Quincy, Illinois, sandwiched in between two of the wins.
Tonight the Chargers host Michigan Tech University at 8 p.m. The Huskies boast a 7-3 record in GLIAC play and a 10-4 record overall.
“Michigan Tech runs a tremendous offense and they’re very solid defensively,” Tharp said.
Michigan Tech’s offense is led by senior guard Ben Stelzer, who is averaging 22.2 points per game this season with an impressive 45.2 percent shooting clip from beyond the arc.
“He’s a great shooter,” Miller said. “We’re going to have our hands full trying to get him off screens and make him feel uncomfortable as much as we can.”
On Saturday the Chargers will host Northern Michigan University, who are 4-6 in GLIAC play.
“Northern Michigan is a really athletic team,” Cooper said. “They get up and down the court really fast so we’re just going to have to keep working on our transition defense and make sure we take care of the ball.”
The Chargers have already lost two home games this season, something they didn’t do all of last season.
“We just haven’t made enough winning plays,” Tharp said. “We’ve got to get back to protecting this beautiful new facility we have.”
The Chargers will look to protect home court and snap their mini three-game skid tonight.