Schedule
IU-Northwest (4-1, 0-0 CCAC) at #17/21 Hillsdale (4-0, 0-0 G-MAC) | 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20 | Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena | Hillsdale, MI
#17/21 Hillsdale (4-0, 0-0 G-MAC) vs Winona St. (3-1, 0-0 NSIC) | 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 23 | De Simone Arena | Kenosha, WI
 
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Additional Info
Hillsdale Roster | IU-Northwest Roster | Winona St. Roster | Hillsdale Stats | IU-Northwest Stats | Winona St. Stats | G-MAC Standings | G-MAC Stats
 
Projected Starters
Hillsdale: #2 Ashton Janowski, Jr, G, Pewaukee, WI/Pewaukee (10.3 ppg, 3.5 apg); #4 Charles Woodhams, Sr., G, Otsego, MI/Otsego (12.3 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 3 apg); #30 Logan Beaston, rFr., G, Tiffin, OH/Columbian (12.5 ppg, 2 rpg); #31 CJ Yarian, So., F, Cleveland, OH/St. Ignatius (7 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 2 apg, 1 spg); #33 Joe Reuter, Sr., F, Chippewa Falls, WI/Chippewa Falls (11.5 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 3.8 apg, 1.5 spg)
 
IU-Northwest: #0 Anthony Taylor, Sr., G, Chicago, IL/Richards (14 ppg, 6 rpg, 3 apg, 1.2 spg, 1.2 bpg); #4 Trace Williams, Sr., G, Flossmore, IL/Homewood-Flossmore (18.2 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 6.8 apg, 2.4 spg); #10 Dannie Smith, Sr., F, Chicago, IL/Orr (17.6 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 3 apg, 1.2 spg); #13 Ladaion Barnes, Jr., F, Hammond, IN/Morton (1.4 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.2 apg, 1 bpg); #34 Jaylen Jennings, Sr., F, Indianapolis, IN/Ben Davis (6 ppg, 3.8 rpg)
 
Winona St.:  #3 Jhei-R Jones, Sr., G, Sauk Village, IL/Lincoln Way/Fort Lewis (11.0 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 3.3 apg, 2 spg); #7 Luke Haertle, So., G, Hartland, WI/Lake County Lutheran/U. of Wisconsin (21.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 3.8 apg, 1.3 spg); #15 Isaiah Thompson, Sr., F, Lansing, MI/Fountain Fort Carson/Fort Lewis (12 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 1 spg); #22 Tyler Mason, Fr., G, Metamora, IL/Metamora (10.3 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 1.3 spg); #30 Connor Drew, Sr., F, Huxley, IA/Ballard (12 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 2 apg)

 
Scouting the Opposition
IU-Northwest: A solid program that's usually near the top of the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference, the RedHawks enter 2024-25 with big goals after making the NAIA Tournament in two of the last three seasons.

IU-Northwest has a veteran, senior-heavy lineup led by 2024 CCAC Newcomer of the Year Dannie Smith and All-CCAC guards Trace Williams and Anthony Taylor, who all return from last year's squad and are off to great starts to help the RedHawks to a 4-1 record so far. Junior LaDaion Barnes has done a solid job filling in for Demarius Splunge, a returning starter who's missed the last three games, and Jaylen Jennings has taken over as the team's post presence.

Caleb Jenkins and Max Otterbacher are the first players off the bench for a RedHawks team that plays fast and aggressively, with a focus on forcing turnovers and getting out in transition offensively. IU-Northwest also shares the ball impressively, averaging 20 assists per game.

Javier Heridia is in his ninth season as head coach for the RedHawks, with four 20-win seasons, two NAIA Tournament appearances and a CCAC Tournament championship in that span.
 
Winona St.:  A historical powerhouse program with four Central Region championships and two NCAA DII Championships in the last two decades, Winona State looks to be on another upswing, posting its first 20-plus win season in a decade last year.

The Warriors lost four starters from that team, but have reloaded quickly thanks to strong work in the transfer portal. Wisconsin transfer Luke Haertle has worked through the transition to DII quickly and has been lighting up opponents, averaging over 20 points a game so far, while two transfers from Colorado power Fort Lewis, Jhei-R Jones and Isaiah Thompson, have made huge contributions so far. Along with holdover Connor Drew and freshman Tyler Mason, Winona has five players averaging double figures so far.

The Warriors' two top players off the bench are freshman Nick Taylor and sophomore Arius Alijosius, as Winona keeps a tight rotation to ensure its five starters are on the court as much as possible.

Hillsdale will be Winona's third Midwest Region opponent, as the Warriors already have wins over Missouri-St. Louis and Michigan Tech in a 3-1 start. The game will be played at a neutral site as Parkside has agreed to host the contest in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Saturday.
 
Scouting the Chargers
Hillsdale is now 4-0 after two lopsided victories last week, and the strong start to the season has helped the Chargers earn the #17 ranking in the nation in last week's D2CSC poll. With two tougher tests this week, the Chargers look to remain unbeaten and keep climbing.

Despite a young squad with only one returning starter in 2023-24, the Hillsdale College men's basketball team put together a solid campaign, winning 18 games and keeping a streak of seven straight top four G-MAC finishes intact.

Now, as the calendar turns from the 2024-25 season, last year's young squad at Hillsdale becomes one of the most veteran teams in the G-MAC, and a serious contender for the G-MAC crown and a potential return trip to the NCAA Tournament after a year's absence.

Entering this winter, the Chargers go from returning only one starter to returning four of five starters, and 11 of 13 players that appeared in at least one game in the 2023-24 season. Leading the way is senior forward Joe Reuter, a two-time All-G-MAC selection who's entering his third year as a starter and one of just three first-team All-G-MAC players from a year ago who are back for the 2024-25 season.

Reuter led Hillsdale in scoring, rebounding, assists, steals and blocks last season and should be one of the top players in the conference. He'll be flanked by two more returning double-digit scorers in guards Charles Woodhams, a fifth-year senior, and Ashton Janowski, a junior. Both players came into their own last season as starters and scoring threats and give Hillsdale great toughness and continuity up front.

An area where the Chargers are hoping for major improvement is in the paint. Starting center CJ Yarian returns after a solid first season on the court for Hillsdale, while fellow sophomores Caleb Glaser and Garrett Bolte gained great experience off the bench and will look to continue growing as sophomores. The unit will get a big boost from a healthy Eric Radisevic, who contributed last year but was limited for much of the season by injuries. Now entering 2024-25 fully recovered, Radisevic could make a big impact for the Chargers, who lacked offensive punch from the center position at points in 2023-24 and could jump to another level as a team with better production down low.

Two players who could see their role grow as Hillsdale looks to replace the graduated Samuel Vasiu are sharpshooting sophomore Mikey McCollum and junior point guard Cole McWhinnie, both of whom excelled in substitute roles in 2023-24 and who will compete for more minutes this season.

Additionally, don't count out two players coming off their redshirt years this season. Guard Logan Beaston and post Connor Stonebraker are both skilled offensive players and have the talent to carve out roles of their own on an experienced squad, while further bolstering the Chargers' depth.

Head coach Keven Bradley returns for his second season at the helm after a solid first season, and brings back assistant Evan Morrissey for a second year, while adding Michigan native Travis Schuba to the coaching staff for this campaign as well.

Matchup History

• This is the first-ever meeting between Hillsdale and both IU-Northwest and Winona State, making it back-to-back weeks with first-time opponents for the Chargers.

 
Other Notes

• The Chargers were picked to finish second in the G-MAC Preseason Poll released in late October, with four first place votes. Defending champion Kentucky Wesleyan was picked to repeat, while defending G-MAC Tournament champion Walsh was picked to finish third. Since joining the league in 2017-18, Hillsdale has never finished lower than third in the final standings.
• Hillsdale entered the national rankings in the D2CSC poll last week, checking in at 17^th in the nation after a 4-0 start. In addition to the D2CSC poll, Hillsdale also cracked the top 25 in this week's NABC Coaches Poll, ranking 21^st. Hillsdale is one of four teams in the Midwest Region ranked in the NABC poll, including Ferris St. (13^th), Lake Superior St. (22^nd) and G-MAC foe Findlay (25^th), while four more Midwest Region schools were also receiving votes.
• Hillsdale returns four starters from last year's squad, headlined by returning All-G-MAC honoree Joe Reuter. The senior forward is a third-year starter and a two-time All-Conference player who also was named G-MAC Freshman of the Year for the 2021-22 season. Along with high scoring guards Ashton Janowski and Charles Woodhams, Reuter has been a key piece for Hillsdale so far, nearly averaging a double-double while also sitting among the league leaders in assists and steals as well.
• The Chargers are playing at an elite level so far at both ends of the floor, ranking second in the G-MAC and 32^nd in NCAA DII in scoring offense at 89.8 points per game, and second in the G-MAC and tied for 12^th in the nation in scoring defense at 59.5 points per game. Hillsdale's 30-points-per-game scoring margin on opponents currently ranks fourth in NCAA DII.
• Hillsdale is known for its excellent 3-point defense, and last year's team was the best the Chargers have had at it since the 3-point line was introduced. Teams shot just 29.3% from deep on Hillsdale last season, the lowest among G-MAC squads and in the top 10 nationally. So far, through four games, Hillsdale is conceding just 23.3% from beyond the arc, which leads the G-MAC by a significant margin and is top 10 in NCAA DII so far.
• The Chargers' strong offensive performance is buoyed by excellent shooting from deep so far in the 2024-25 campaign, as Hillsdale has hit over 50% of 3-point attempts in three of its four games so far and is in the top 15 nationally in made 3-pointers per game with 11.8. With a variety of excellent 3-point shooters led by Logan Beaston (16 makes, 48.5%) and Mikey McCollum (40.9% shooting), there's reason to believe Hillsdale's impressive outburst from beyond the arc may be sustainable.
• Hillsdale puts a priority on cleaning up the defensive glass, and the Chargers are once again one of the G-MAC's leaders in rebounds conceded, giving up 25.5 rebounds per game to opponents, the best mark in the G-MAC. A strong rebounding team overall, Hillsdale's 16.5 rebounding margin against opponents is the top mark in the G-MAC so far.