The Hillsdale College men's basketball team has put together an impressive run over the last six seasons, including four NCAA DII Tournament appearances, two G-MAC titles, two Sweet 16 appearances and a Midwest Regional title.
A new generation of players now steps into the limelight for the Chargers looking to maintain and build off of the achievements of the classes who've come before.
You can follow the journey of the 2023-24 Hillsdale men's basketball team all season long as ticket packages are now on sale at hillsdalechargers.com, under the tickets tab. Single game tickets for all 14 Chargers home games in the 2023-24 campaign are available beginning with a Sunday afternoon contest against Saginaw Valley State University on Nov. 12 at 3 p.m.
The 2023-24 Chargers will have a different look after graduating six seniors, including four starters, from last year's 23-win squad that made an unprecedented third-straight NCAA DII Tournament appearance. There's also a new leader at the helm for the program, as Keven Bradley, previously the Associate Head Coach for the Chargers, steps into the head coaching role to replace long-time head man John Tharp, who stepped aside to become Hillsdale College's Director of Athletics in April.
But while there will be new faces in place for Hillsdale, there's still a fair amount of continuity with past success for the Chargers to build off of in the 2023-24 season. Second-team All-G-MAC honoree Joe Reuter returns for his junior season and will play a key role, while senior post Eric Radisevic and wing Charles Woodhams also bring back plenty of playing experience for Hillsdale after serving as the Chargers' first two players off the bench in 2022-23.
Joining those three core returners are three guards who saw the court for Hillsdale in spot duty in 2023-24 and will be counted on to play bigger roles this season -- sophomore Ashton Janowski, who showed promise as a true freshman off the bench in 2022-23, as well as sharpshooting guard Cole McWhinnie and slashing wing Samuel Vasiu. Hillsdale will also look to Walt Mattingly for increased playing time at the forward position after appearing in 19 games for the Chargers last season.
Even the coaching change involves a familiar face as Bradley has been working with this Chargers squad for the last three seasons and, as an assistant, was one of the architects of one of the greatest runs in program history under Tharp during that time. Bradley's familiarity with the program should be a huge asset as his young team looks to hit the ground running in the 2023-24 campaign.
Along with experienced returners, there will be an opportunity for new blood to make their mark on the 2023-24 team for Hillsdale. Posts Garrett Bolte and C.J. Yarian and guard Jacob Meyer were able to redshirt during their freshman years in 2022-23 with a senior-heavy lineup capable of carrying the load ahead of them, and all three will get the opportunity to carve out meaningful roles in 2023-24 with several spots in the rotation up for grabs.
There's also the incoming freshmen, a strong five-player class full of size, length and talent who have . While they'll need time to get acclimated to the college game, they'll also have a shot to crack the lineup early in their careers if they prove to be quick studies.
Hillsdale has a rugged schedule in 2023-24 that starts with a road exhibition game against a Michigan State team that's likely to be a preseason top five squad at the NCAA Division I level on Oct. 25 at 7 p.m. There will be challenges for the Chargers in G-MAC play as well, as defending G-MAC Tourney champion Ashland returns its starting lineup more or less intact, while top 2022-23 teams Walsh, Tiffin, Cedarville, Lake Erie and Findlay also bring back significant portions of their rosters. You can see the full schedule here.