Playing for the final time before Christmas break, Lourdes gave NCAA Division II foe Hillsdale all it wanted on Wednesday evening before falling to the Chargers 84-77 inside of Potter Arena in Hillsdale, Mich.
 
The game was an exhibition for the Gray Wolves, while it counted in the regular season results for the host Chargers.

"I was happy with our effort and execution tonight," head coach Josh Gibson said afterwards.  "It was great to have contributions from some guys who haven't been able to play as much with a short bench."
 
After falling behind early 8-2, the Gray Wolves used an 8-1 run to take a 16-14 advantage following a three-pointer by Deuce Martin (Flint, Mich./Atherton H.S.).  The lead would be the only one of the contest for the Gray Wolves.
 
Hillsdale scored 11 consecutive points late in the first half to build a 35-22 lead with 5:11 remaining before the break, before holding a 41-33 edge at intermission.
 
A layup by McRay White (Cleveland, Ohio/Garfield Heights H.S.) and a triple by Brett Lauf (Napoleon, Ohio/Napoleon H.S.) to open the second half pulled the Gray Wolves within three before White made it 45-44 with a dunk at the 17:24 mark.
 
Again Hillsdale went on a run to extend its lead back to 10, 60-50.  The Chargers maintained a 10-point lead, 71-61, with just under five minutes to play before Lourdes made one final push.  A triple by Kadeim Jones (Dayton, Ohio/Marshall H.S.) made it a three-point game, 77-74, with two minutes to play, but the Chargers would respond with seven straight points to put the game out of reach.
 
White led the Gray Wolves with 23 points and nine rebounds while Lauf added 19 points.  Martin hit four triples to finish with 12 points while Clif Snow (Middletown, Ohio/Middletown H.S.) added 11 points.

"I was happy to see Ray play in a game the way we see him play every day in practice," Gibson added.  "If we can continue to build positive momentum and he can gain confidence from a game like this, I really think we have an extremely high ceiling in the second half of the season."
 
The Gray Wolves shot 49.1% from the floor and made 12-of-26 (46.2%) from long range, but committed 19 turnovers which led to 26 Charger points.
 
Nick Czarnowski led Hillsdale (8-4) with 18 points while Austen Yarian added 17 off the bench as the Chargers shot 54.1% from the floor on the evening.
 
Lourdes (9-6) will take nine days off before returning to action on Friday, Dec. 28, as the Gray Wolves host Kent State-Tuscarawas.  Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. inside the Russell J. Ebeid Recreation Center.