Senior Ashton Janowski dunking a basketball at the team’s first practice of the 2025-26 season
Courtesy | The Hillsdale College Athletic Department

The Hillsdale men’s basketball team aims to win the Great Midwest Athletic Conference in the upcoming season, according to junior CJ Yarian. They finished third in the GMAC overall with a 20-10 record last year.

“We’re a hungry team,” Yarian said. “We’re very young and there are a lot of opportunities for everyone. I think everyone’s ready to go, ready to play.”

Though the Chargers lost in the semi-finals of the GMAC, head coach Keven Bradley said he is confident for what is to come. 

“I think the biggest opportunity for us this season is finding ways to be a little more consistent on the road,” Bradley said. “We played a lot of really close games last season and we had some that didn’t go our way. So we’ll try to be a little bit better, a little bit tighter, and a little more efficient in late games.”

Bradley, who is entering his third season as head coach, has a win-loss record of 48-20. He said the upperclassmen members of the team have embraced the five freshmen who joined the program this year.

“Our older guys do such a great job with the younger guys, not only showing them the way and the standards and the expectations of the program, but also embracing them as their future teammates and brothers,” Bradley said. “That’s a huge credit to the senior captains, with their willingness to take them under their wings.” 

Senior captain Ashton Janowski said the freshmen take constructive feedback well. 

“They’ve done a great job listening to senior Cole McWhinnie and me and some of the older guys on the team, and then taking that and being productive on the floor,” Janowski said. “They’ve been great additions, and I’m excited for their growth throughout the season.”

At the team’s first open gym of the preseason, Janowski tore a tendon in his foot and has missed many of the workouts because of it.

“There’s been a lot of rehab,” Janowski said. “I’ve been in the training room and I’ve been doing a lot of physical therapy exercises. I’m trying to get my conditioning back up. It’s kind of the main thing that you lose when you’re out for so long. But the best ability is availability, and I got to be there on the floor both for my team and also as a leader. ”

Yarian said one way the team builds camaraderie is with a trip to Italy every four years. Every team member has an opportunity to go. 

“We went for 10 days this summer,” Yarian said. “We went to Rome, Venice, and Florence, and we played three games out there. We were able to build a connection with each other through that to start the year, which we usually don’t have.” 

The first game of the season will be both against and hosted by Saginaw Valley State University at 7 p.m. Nov. 14. The Chargers will then play Saginaw Valley a second time for their first home game in the Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena at 3 p.m. Nov. 16.