March 3, 2009 - Shooting 50 percent from 3-point land, the Michigan Tech University men's basketball team knocked the Hillsdale College Chargers out of the 2009 GLIAC Men's Basketball Tournament, 69-54 Tuesday night.

Hillsdale is 16-11 on the season, and still has a chance to qualify for the NCAA Division II regional tournament. The Huskies are 14-14 on the season and will face the University of Findlay Friday night in the tournament semifinals. Hillsdale was ranked eighth in the latest Midwest Regional poll. The top eight teams in each region qualify for the NCAA Tournament.

Michigan Tech shot 9-for-18 from 3-point land, compared to 4-for-18 for the Chargers. The 15-point differential in 3-point efficiency equaled the margin of victory for Michigan Tech in the game.

Hillsdale was outrebounded by Michigan Tech 38-20, and despite playing the Huskies to a 35-35 draw in the second half, could not overcome a 34-19 deficit at halftime.

It was the first time Hillsdale's men's team had ever hosted a first-round GLIAC Tournament game. The Chargers haven't won a conference tournament game since 1997.

Seven players scored six points or more for Michigan Tech, led by 14 points from Georgio Holt, who was 4-for-6 from 3-point territory. Center Fedrick Bowe helped get the team off to a good start, and finished with 10 points and eight rebounds for MTU.

Hillsdale's five-member senior class played the final home games of their excellent careers Tuesday night. Senior Tony Gugino cemented his place as one of the best players in school history, and played his last game with 15 points, seven rebounds, two steals and one blocked shot.

Senior guard Keith MacKenzie had 14 points and two assists. Freshman guard Tyler Gerber contributed 10 points, and stands as one of the many reasons for continued success for the team in the future.

Click on the link below to view the box score from Tuesday's game.



Box score