The Hillsdale College men's basketball team took a tough loss on the road at one of the G-MAC's top teams on Saturday, falling to host Ashland 80-63.

The Chargers never led, falling behind 8-0 to the Eagles to start, but had cut a 16-point deficit to 12 with 4:04 left in the first half, trailing 36-24. Ashland would put the game away after the under-four timeout, finishing the half on a 12-0 run to double their lead entering the break. A late run in the final minutes of the game allowed Hillsdale to cut the deficit to 17 with seven seconds to play, but that was as close as Hillsdale would get in the second half.

Ashland succeeded by getting to the rim, outscoring the Chargers 56-22 on points in the paint and out-rebounding Hillsdale 33-23. Those advantages meant the Chargers couldn't keep pace even with a decent shooting night, including 46.8% on field goals and seven made 3-pointers.

Connor Stonebraker was a bright spot for Hillsdale, leading the way with 17 points on 5 of 6 shooting from the floor and 2 for 2 from beyond the arc. Cole McWhinnie added seven points and four assists for the Chargers, freshman Matt Buckman chipped in seven points, and Caleb Glaser finished with six points and four rebounds as well.

Hillsdale is now 9-15 overall, 6-10 in the G-MAC and will need a strong finish in the final four games of the season to snag a G-MAC Tourney bid. Luckily for Hillsdale, three of the team's final four games will be played at home in Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena, where the Chargers have a winning record this season. The first of those contests comes on Thursday, Feb. 19, where Hillsdale hosts Kentucky Wesleyan in a game that's an important potential quality win that could shore up the Chargers' resume.