Dominant Region 4 performance sparks DuPage on path to NJCAA nationals

JOLIET, ILL. & GLEN ELLYN, ILL. - Basketball titles may be a somewhat new feeling for the College of DuPage, however, first year head coach Joe Kuhn has simply picked up right where he left off. Kuhn and the top-seeded Chaparrals rolled to a 2023 NJCAA Region 4 Division III Men's Basketball Tournament Championship with an 85-69 victory over second-seeded Madison College on February 26 at Joliet Junior College to win COD's first region crown since 2009. Sophomore guard Drew Gaston earned Region 4 Tournament Most Valuable Player honors, while Kuhn took home his another Region 4 Coach of the Year award.

After splitting their regular season series with the WolfPack, the two teams battled back-and-forth in the first half until a 20-7 run by the Chaps eventually led to a 13-point halftime lead. DuPage took total control with a 16-6 burst to start the second half and led by double-digits for the game's final 28 minutes. Gaston posted 21 points, and was joined on the Region 4 All-Tournament Team by Matt Elliott and Finn Walsh, who each scored ten points. Alijah Nelson and Gerald Tate had 17 and 12 points, respectively. Gaston and Madison College's Keith Hoffman both reached 1,000 career points during the game.

The College of DuPage advanced to and hosted the NJCAA Great Lakes District Championship against Region 12 winner Lorain County Community College (OH) on March 4. A big second half propelled the Chaparrals to an 84-70 win and an automatic spot in the 2023 NJCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championships in Herkimer, New York, from March 15-18. Gaston again led the charge with 24 points, while Elliott pitched in with 22 points, ten rebounds, and six blocks. The College of DuPage (20-13) will open the tournament as the #11 seed and square off with #6-seeded Fulton-Montgomery (20-6) on Wednesday, March 15 at 5pm. The winner will advance to face #3-seeded Brookdale Community College (27-3) at 7pm on Thursday, March 16. This will mark the seventh national appearance for the Chaps, who last won a national title in 2002. 

2023 Region 4 Division III All-Tournament Team
Terrell Taylor - Joliet Junior College
Keith Hoffman - Madison College
Deante Luster - Madison College 
Finn Walsh - College of DuPage
Matt Elliott - College of DuPage
Drew Gaston - College of DuPage

2023 Region 4 Tournament MVP
Drew Gaston - College of DuPage

2023 Region 4 Coach of the Year
Joe Kuhn - College of DuPage