Schedule
#7/9 Hillsdale (7-0, 0-0 G-MAC) at Cedarville (5-1, 0-0 G-MAC) | 7:45 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1 | Callan Athletic Center | Cedarville, Ohio
Trevecca Nazarene (1-4, 0-0 GLIAC) at #7/9 Hillsdale (7-0, 0-0 G-MAC) | 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 3 | Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena | Hillsdale, MI
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Additional Info
Hillsdale Roster | Cedarville Roster | Trevecca Roster | Hillsdale Stats | Cedarville Stats | Trevecca Stats
Projected Starters
Hillsdale: #2 Kyle Goessler, Sr., F, Brunswick, OH/Brunswick (12.7 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 2.3 apg); #3 Jack Gohlke, Sr., G, Pewaukee, WI/Pewaukee (12.9 ppg, 5 rpg, 3 apg); #5 Cole Nau, Sr, G, Brookfield, WI/Central (7.7 ppg, 5 rpg, 3.9 apg, 1.3 spg); #20 Peter Kalthoff, Sr., F, Hillsdale, MI/Hillsdale Academy (11 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.1 bpg); #33 Joe Reuter, So., F, Chippewa Falls, WI/Chippewa Falls (13.3 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 3.7 apg)
Cedarville: #1 Jacob Drees, Sr., F, Hilliard, OH/Davidson (13.2 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 2.9 apg, 1 spg, 2 bpg); #4 Chris Rogers, Sr., G, Harrisonburg, VA/Blue Ridge/Trevecca Nazarene (6.3 ppg, 3 rpg, 2.4 apg, 1 spg); #5 Grant Whisman, Jr., F, Middletown, OH/Madison (13 ppg, 4 rpg); #22 Brayden Sipple, So., G, Blanchester, OH/Blanchester (7.3 ppg); #32 Jayvon Maughmer, Jr., F, Chillicothe, OH/Chillicothe (19.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 3.9 apg, 1.8 spg)
Trevecca: #2 Peter Lambesis, Sr., G, Mt. Prospect, IL/St. Viator/Illinois Wesleyan (8.7 ppg, 4 rpg); #3, Lawrence Brazil III, Jr., G, Belleville, IL/West/Missouri-St. Louis (9.4 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.8 apg, 1.2 spg); #24 Caleb Terry, Jr., F/C, Albany, OH/Alexander (9.6 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 2.2 bpg); #25 Jake Mulder, Fr., F, Brentwood, TN/Ravenwood (5.6 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 2.4 apg, 1 spg); #35 Jose Waring, Fr., F, Georgetown, TX/Georgetown (8.3 ppg, 4 rpg)
Scouting the Opposition
Cedarville: The Yellowjackets were expected to take a big step backward from last year's NCAA Tournament qualifying squad, having graduated four starters and five career 1,000 point scorers.
But Cedarville has defied those predictions with a strong start under decorated head coach Pat Estepp, who's reloaded with an intriguing mix of returning talent, transfers and impact freshmen.
The lone returning starter, Jayvon Maughmer, has taken on the lead role and elevated his game, playing like a potential conference player of the year candidate through six games. He's supported by Jacob Drees and Grant Whisman, who were both part of the rotation off the bench last year and have become double-figure scorers in bigger roles this season.
Sophomore Brayden Sipple and Trevecca Nazarene transfer Chris Rogers round out the starting lineup, and Cedarville has taken advantage of a deep bench led by true freshman guards Kyle Thomas and Ethan Sellars, both of whom are bringing scoring punch in part-time roles for the Yellow Jackets.
One of just three teams in the G-MAC to finish non-conference play with one or fewer losses, Cedarville's offense is the most potent in the G-MAC so far at 83.7 points per game, and will be a good test for the Chargers' G-MAC leading scoring defense, conceding just 59.1 points per game so far.
Estepp is entering his 14th season leading the Yellow Jackets in 2022-23. He's guided Cedarville to six 20-win seasons, a G-MAC championship in 2013, and the first NCAA DII Tournament berth in program history last season.
Trevecca: The 2022-23 season is a near-complete reset for the Trojans, who return just five players and only one part-time starter from the 2021-22 squad.
Trevecca opened the season with a stunning upset of Midwest Region power Ferris State, but are 0-4 since, as illness and player absences have made it hard to build chemistry and consistent lineups for a team that has precious few minutes on the court together.
The one key holdover so far for the Trojans is center Caleb Terry, who's played in all five games and leads the team in scoring and rebounding while also averaging 2.2 blocks per game. Missouri-St. Louis transfer Lawrence Brazil III and Illinois Wesleyan transfer Peter Lambesis have also been key as veteran leaders from extremely successful programs, though Lambesis missed last week's games.
Beyond that core, Trevecca is looking for young players to step up and develop as the season goes on, with seven true freshmen currently playing significant minutes for the Trojans. Forwards Jose Waring and Jake Mulder have made the biggest impact so far, but Trevecca will need significant contributions from this entire group to move up in the G-MAC standings.
The Trojans are coached by Omar Mance, who is entering his fifth season with the program. He's compiled a 21-85 record in his time at Trevecca entering this season, and a 17-61 record in G-MAC play.
Scouting the Chargers
The Chargers are off to a 7-0 start entering G-MAC play, the team's best start since the 2010-11 season. Hillsdale has displayed impressive balance so far that should serve them well as the Chargers enter the challenging grind of the conference schedule.
The challenge in 2022-23 for the Chargers is to remain among the elite in the Midwest Region while replacing several key players in the frontcourt. Hillsdale no longer has the only two-time first team NCAA DII All-American in program history as Patrick Cartier has graduated, and also gone are perennial All-G-MAC forward Austen Yarian and key defensive stopper Tavon Brown.
While those shoes will be tough to fill, Hillsdale still has plenty of talent and experience to draw on as the Chargers look to continue their run of recent success. Hillsdale's entire starting backcourt returns intact and those three seniors – point guard Cole Nau and wings Kyle Goessler and Jack Gohlke – will be critical veteran leaders for the squad while also looking to take on more of the team's scoring load.
Also returning is sophomore forward Joe Reuter, who came on after the Christmas Break to become the Chargers' sixth man, and earn G-MAC Freshman of the Year honors in his first collegiate season. With a potential move into the starting lineup in 2022-23, Reuter could be the breakout player of the season in the G-MAC if he can translate his production in a part-time role in 2021-22 into larger minutes.
In the post, veterans Peter Kalthoff and Eric Radisevic have looked solid in bigger roles as Hillsdale looks to offset some of the lost production from the graduation of its top three post players from last season.
Additional scoring support off the bench could come from a number of sources – sophomore Charles Woodhams will look to carve out a bigger role, while redshirt freshmen Walt Mattingly and Cole McWhinnie will get their first real crack at playing time as well. True freshman Ashton Janowski is another player to watch who could contribute early on in his college career.
Directing the Chargers for the 16th straight season is head coach John Tharp, who is the all-time winningest coach in program history with a 281-144 record. Returning on Hillsdale's bench this year for a third season is associate head coach Keven Bradley, and he will be joined by first-year assistant John Cheng.
Other Notes
- Hillsdale has a 12-1 series lead over Cedarville, but that record doesn't do justice to how close the games in this series have been, especially away from Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena. The Chargers were 3-1 against the Yellow Jackets last year, but 2-1 away from home, with all three of those games being decided by single digits. The Chargers also have a commanding 11-0 series lead over Trevecca, but Hillsdale has had a couple of scares, including two single possession wins in 2017 and 2021.
- After starting the 2022-23 season unranked, Hillsdale was 7h in the nation in the most recent D2SIDA poll, and ninth in the NABC national rankings, making this the third consecutive season Hillsdale has spent time in the national top 25 rankings. The Chargers also are currently the top-ranked team in the Midwest in the D2SIDA regional poll, receiving all five first-place votes.
- Hillsdale has a chance to do something special this year, coming into the season off of back-to-back 20-plus win campaigns. The Chargers have never had three consecutive 20-win seasons in the NCAA DII era, and not since a stretch of four straight from 1977-81 in its NAIA era. Hillsdale is also looking to make an unprecedented third-straight NCAA Tournament after qualifying in both 2021 and 2022.
- The Chargers have won 19 or more games in five consecutive seasons, but it's been over a decade since Hillsdale has opened the season 7-0. The last time was in 2010-11, when Hillsdale jumped out to a 13-0 start behind high scoring wings Brent Eaton and Brad Guinane, as well as steady point guard Tyler Gerber. Those 13 straight wins to begin the season are a program record, but this year's squad will look to chase that mark with the program's third-best start ever so far.
- In dealing with the graduation of All-American center Patrick Cartier, the Chargers have replaced one of the best players in program history with impressive offensive balance. Five different Chargers have led Hillsdale in scoring in the first seven games, and four players are averaging 11 or more points per game, with point guard Cole Nau just outside of that mark at 7.7 points per game. The ability to get significant scoring punch from all five positions is helping the Chargers pose real problems for defenses so far in the 2022-23 season.
- Centers Peter Kalthoff and Eric Radisevic barely saw the court before this season, with just a combined 179 minutes played in the last three years, but have done an admirable job filling the void in the middle left by Cartier. Kalthoff is averaging 11 points per game and has four double-figure scoring contests so far, while Radisevic is chipping in 6 points per contest off the bench for the Chargers. Both players should only continue improving with more playing time as the season goes on.
- Senior Jack Gohlke had back-to back impressive contests to help lift Hillsdale stay undefeated this past week. Gohlke opened the week by scoring a career-high 26 points on 8 of 13 shooting from 3-point range in a 74-53 win over Northern Michigan on Sunday, November 20. Gohlke's eight three pointers were the most in a single game by a Chargers since Stedman Lowry hit nine twice in the 2016-17 season, and just two shy of the program record of 10 hit by Tim Homan against Saginaw Valley State in 2007. The junior then followed that performance up with seven more 3-pointers and 25 points this past Saturday in a 93-62 win over Saginaw Valley State. Gohlke currently leads the G-MAC in 3-pointers made this season.
- Over 16 years, there are certain hallmarks that successful Charger basketball teams have in common under head coach John Tharp, and the 2022-23 squad is no different. Through seven games, the Chargers are giving up just 59.1 points per game, the top defense in the G-MAC and 13th in the nation at the DII level. They're accomplishing that feat by holding opponents to 39.8% shooting from the field, tied for the best mark in the G-MAC, and to an incredible 23% mark from 3-point range, also the top in the G-MAC and the third-best in the nation. The Chargers also limit opponent possessions by taking care of the ball, posting a solid 1.55 assist to turnover ratio so far this season.
- Already the winningest head coach in Hillsdale College history, Tharp is fast approaching two major career milestones that he could potentially reach this season if the Chargers have another special year. At 281 wins at Hillsdale, Tharp needs just 19 victories to become the first Charger men's basketball coach with 300 wins in program history, and he's only 16 wins away from becoming the 20th active coach at the NCAA DII level to reach 500 wins for his career as well. Although neither mark will be easy to reach, it's something worth keeping an eye on as the season progresses, especially as Hillsdale has gotten off to a strong start.
Photo by David Dermer