The #12/19 Hillsdale College men's basketball team rallied in its home contest against the University of Indianapolis on Saturday, but couldn't get a potential tying shot that would have forced overtime to fall in the final seconds in a tough 81-79 loss to the Greyhounds.

Hillsdale trailed by seven points, 77-70 with 2:50 to play, but the Chargers fought back, as Ashton Janowski made all three free throws after being fouled on a 3-point attempt, and Joe Reuter hit back to back baskets to cut UIndy's lead to two with 34 seconds to go. The two teams traded free throws on the ensuing possession, and when the Greyhounds missed the front end of a one-and-one, Hillsdale got the ball back with 8.4 seconds and a chance to tie.

Reuter got a good look, a fadeaway jumper from the top of the key, but couldn't get it to go, and two tip-in attempts right before the final buzzer fell agonizingly short as time expired.

Hillsdale led 42-39 at the half after a late 3-pointer to beat the buzzer by Logan Beaston, but couldn't overcome a 1 for 12 shooting performance from 3-point range in the second half, while the Greyhounds hit 44% from deep for the game to build a meaningful edge. While Hillsdale's 76% free throw percentage also wasn solid, it was bested by UIndy's 85.7% advantage at the charity stripe, and a couple of missed opportunities for Hillsdale from the foul line proved important in such a close game. 

Reuter led Hillsdale with a solid outing, finishing with 19 points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals and zero turnovers. Janowski added 18 points on 6 of 11 shooting. Mikey McCollum scored 10 points off the bench for Hillsdale, Charles Woodhams chipped in seven points and eight rebounds, and Eric Radisevic and Garrett Bolte each added six points for the Chargers.

The Chargers, now 10-2 overall and 4-0 in the G-MAC, will look to regroup from the loss. They'll have time to figure things out thanks to the Christmas Break, as Hillsdale doesn't play again until a road trip to a tough Ashland team on Jan. 2 at 6 p.m. That contest returns Hillsdale to conference play and sets up a huge second half for the Chargers, who are in contention for the G-MAC title but have a tough fight on their hands in a deep and challenging conference, beginning with the Eagles.

Photo by Emma Purdy