Box score

January 29, 2011 – A miraculous 3-point shot at the regulation buzzer, along with near-perfect free throw shooting, gave the Michigan Tech University men’s basketball team a 93-82 overtime win over Hillsdale College Saturday afternoon in Houghton.

The Chargers fell just seconds short of running the table against the GLIAC North Division during this regular season. The loss drops the team to 15-3 overall and 9-3 in the GLIAC. Hillsdale is back in action next Thursday in its first-ever visit to Painesville, Ohio, for a game against Lake Erie College.

After a missed free throw by the Chargers, MTU freshman Jordan Reetz threw in a 3-pointer as time expired in the second half to tie the game up at 71-71. The play started with just three seconds remaining. The shot gave the Huskies all the momentum in the world, and they went on to pour in 22 points in the five-minute overtime session to pull away with the victory.

Michigan Tech opened up the extra period on a 9-0 run, putting the Chargers in a deep hole with very little time remaining to make it up. Compounding the challenge for the Chargers was the free throw shooting by Michigan Tech, It was virtually flawless. The Huskies went 35-for-39 from the line in the game, by far the most number of makes and attempts from the charity stripe by any opponent of Hillsdale’s this season. Most of the four misses from the line by the Huskies came later in overtime, when the outcome of the game was no longer in doubt.

On the other side, Hillsdale’s free throw shooting was a primary cause for the game going the way it did. Hillsdale shot just 58 percent from the line as a team (14-for-24), and the team missed five straight from the end of regulation into the start of overtime, allowing Michigan Tech to tie, and eventually, win the game.

MTU also shot nearly 50 percent from 3-point land, making 10-of-21 attempts from that area. None bigger than the one that closed out regulation. The Huskies outrebounded the Chargers 34-28 in the game, and scored more points vs. Hillsdale than any other opponent had this season.

Five players scored in double figures for Hillsdale, led by junior Brent Eaton’s 20 points. He made half of the team’s 3-pointers, going 4-for-6 from beyond the arc in the game. Junior guard Tyler Gerber scored 15 and dished out five assists, while junior Brad Guinane had 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Sophomore center Nick Washburn had his second straight strong outing, tossing in 14 points before fouling out late in the second half. Forward Matt Clarke contributed 12 points in 16 minutes off the bench, going 5-for-5 from the floor.

This was the first loss away from home of the season for Hillsdale, who led by as many as six points in the second half. After next Thursday’s game at Lake Erie, the Chargers will play four straight home games, starting with a Feb. 5 contest vs. Northwood.