The Hillsdale College men’s basketball team has already begun preparations for next year’s season following its devastating loss to Grand Valley State University last Wednesday in the first round of the GLIAC tournament.
“We’re beginning to start talking about the plan, what we’re going to do with our guys, and to figure out what each guy needs to do to try to improve and focus our workouts with that,” head coach John Tharp said.
Since they cannot officially begin off-season training until after spring break, the Chargers’ regrouping strategy has been mainly centered around recruiting as Hillsdale coaches have been traveling to high schools in Michigan, as well as Wisconsin and Ohio, to attract potential players. One such player is Stedman Lowry, a 6’3” shooting guard from Lakota East High School in Ohio, who officially committed in the fall. As a junior, Lowry averaged 17.5 points and seven rebounds per game while leading his team to a district championship and a trip to the Sweet 16 of the state tournament.
Young talent like Lowry will be helpful in filling the hole created by the losses of center Nick Washburn, who was named Second-Team All-Conference last week, and forward Ryan Choiniere. The graduation of these Charger big men will make slight scheme readjustment necessary and will force some of Hillsdale’s younger players to transition into greater roles.
“We need some of our younger guys to step up and we just may have to play a little different next year,” Tharp said. “We may not, at times, have a true center on the floor, but we’ve got some good young players that we’re excited about.”
Freshmen forwards Kyle Cooper and Lucas Grose are two players expected to see more playing time next year. Clocking in 111 total minutes this season, Cooper saw more on-the-floor experience than any freshman on the team, which will be helpful in integrating him into the Charger system. Grose also had great production and will be expected to add an even greater impact next year.
“Cooper and Grose, we think, are going to be All-GLIAC type players for us,” Tharp said. Nick Archer, a 6’8” freshman forward who sat out this season due to injury, will also add much-needed depth to the Chargers’ roster.
As far as leadership roles go, Hillsdale will be fortunate to have four of its starters returning. Junior forward Tim Dezelski, who joined Washburn as a member of Second-Team All-Conference, and junior guard Brandon Pritzl will both return as team captains. Junior guard Anthony Manno, who had several impressive off-the-bench performances this year, will also be expected to have a strong leadership position.
