December 6, 2010 - Hillsdale College's men's basketball team is off to its best start in nine years, and Monday afternoon, the team's starting point guard was rewarded for his part in the team's success.

Junior point guard Tyler Gerber was named the GLIAC South Division Player of the Week. The award was announced by the conference office.

Gerber averaged 21 points per game and 4.5 assists per game last week as the Chargers opened the conference schedule with home wins over Ashland and Lake Erie College. In the four-point win over the Eagles last Thursday, Gerber's three-point play with 31 seconds left in the second half turned the game from a one-point Ashland lead into a two-point Hillsdale lead, one it didn't lose the rest of the game.

Saturday afternoon, Gerber scored a season-high 24 points and shot 8-for-14 from the field to lead Hillsdale to a 79-55 win over the Storm. He also had three steals and just one turnover in 26 minutes on the court.

To this point in the season, Gerber has 14 more assists than any other player in the GLIAC (49) and his 6.1 assists-per-game average is also tops in the conference. He also leads the GLIAC in steals with 19, and his 2.9 assist-to-turnover ratio is second-best in the GLIAC.

With an 8-0 overall record, Hillsdale is off to its best start since 2001-02, and the 25th-ranked Chargers also appear in the NABC Division II Top 25 poll for the first time since that season. Gerber and the Chargers will host Ferris State University at Jesse Philips Arena at 6 p.m. Tuesday.