A late push by the Hillsdale College men's basketball team to keep their season alive was too little, too late as the Chargers fell to underdog Malone 58-55 in a G-MAC Tournament Semifinal contest in Hillsdale on Friday night.

Hillsdale led 40-36 with 11:50 to play but went without a basket for nearly six minutes as Malone went on a 13-0 run to turn a four-point deficit into a nine-point lead with just six minutes to play. Trailing 52-42 just a minute and a half later, the Chargers went on a big 11-2 run of their own, punctuated by a transition dunk from Joe Reuter, to cut the deficit to 54-53 with 1:25 to play.

That meant Hillsdale was one stop away from tying up the game, but the Chargers just couldn't keep Malone from getting to the rim and extending the lead back to 56-53 with 44 seconds to go. Charles Woodhams got a basket for the Chargers to cut it back to one with nine seconds to play, but the Chargers were forced to foul and Malone made both free throws at the other end. A potential tying 3-pointer by Hillsdale with two seconds to go was off the mark as Malone took the victory.

 The contest was a slog offensively for the Chargers, who shot just 3 of 16 from deep and 43.6 percent from the floor. At the other end, Hillsdale couldn't stop Malone's Simon Blair in the second half, as the senior guard finished with 26 points. Blair's ability to get to the rim and finish was a major factor in the run that put Malone in control of the game late.

Woodhams led Hillsdale with 12 points and five rebounds, and Ashton Janowski each chipped in 12 points as well for the Chargers. Joe Reuter added eight points, four rebounds and two steals as well for Hillsdale.

The Chargers finish the season at 20-10 overall, Hillsdale's fourth 20-win season in five years. Tonight's game was the final one for an impressive senior class at Hillsdale, Woodhams, Reuter and Eric Radisevic, who were a part of the Chargers' Midwest Regional Championship in 2022 and have an 84-35 record over the past four seasons. They'll be tough to replace, but Hillsdale will return two starters and sixth-man Mikey McCollum, as well as multiple other contributors, as it looks to continue a strong run of recent success in 2025-26.

Photo by Emma Purdy