HERKIMER, N.Y. (March 16, 2023) — Sophomore Drew Gaston scored a team-high 16 points and Matt Elliott followed with 14, but the No. 11 seeded Chaparrals fell to No. 3 seed Brookdale 77-62 in the NJCAA Division III tournament Thursday night.
 
The Chaps (21-14), who had their eight-game winning streak end, now play No. 2 seed Dallas-North Lake at 2 p.m. Eastern Friday in a consolation game. Should COD win, it would play in the fifth-place game at noon Saturday.
 
The Chaps suffered a poor night shooting, hitting just 31.3 percent from the field on 21 of 67 shots. Brookdale held a height advantage, outrebounding the Chaps 55-34 and outscored COD on second-chance shots, 20-7.
 
"We played hard tonight, but didn't shoot very well,'' Chaps head coach Joe Kuhn said. "I thought we got beat on hustle plays and they crashed the boards very well.''
 
Down 38-27 at halftime, COD fought hard to open the second half, outscoring the Jersey Blues 13-3 and grabbed a 41-40 lead on Finn Walsh's layup with 14:49 to go.
 
But Brookdale answered back impressively, outscoring COD 17-4 over the next six minutes and held the lead for good.
 
Elliott had a pair of 3-pointers early in the second half, but sustained an injury and didn't return until late in the game.
 
"Brookdale did a great job of stopping us and they came after Drew,'' Kuhn said. "But no matter. I'm really proud of what we've been able to do down the stretch. It's pretty impressive that we've made it to the final eight in our division.''
 
NJCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship
March 15-18, 2023
Herkimer, N.Y. | Herkimer College
All times Eastern | Click here for PDF bracket
Stream on NJCAA Network Day Pass - $10.00 Tournament Pass - $30.00

Wednesday, March 15
Game 1: No. 9 Mohawk Valley def. No. 8 Prince George, 92-87 
Game 2: No. 5 Northampton def. No. 12 Duchess, 81-65
Game 3: No. 10 Rochester def. No. 7 Butler County 84-81
Game 4: No. 11 Chaparrals def. No. 6 Fulton-Montgomery 89-85 OT
Thursday, March 16
Game 5: No. 8 Prince George def. No. 12 Duchess, 90-85
Game 6: No. 7 Butler County def. No. 6 Fulton-Montgomery, 83-76
Game 7: No. 1 Sandhills def. No. 9 Mohawk Valley, 92-85
Game 8: No. 5 Northampton def. No. 4 Northern Essex, 69-67
Game 9: No. 10 Rochester def. Dallas-North Lake, 73-63
Game 10. No. 3 Brookdale def. No. 11 Chaparrals, 77-62
Friday, March 17
Consolation
No. 4 Northern Essex def. No. 9 Mohawk Valley, 67-62
No. 11 Chaparrals def. No. 2 Dallas-North Lake 53-51
Semifinals
4 p.m.              Game 13: No. 1 Sandhills (29-3) vs. No. 5 Northampton (30-3)
6 p.m.              Game 14: No. 10 Rochester (22-7)  vs. No. 3 Brookdale (28-3)
Saturday, March 18
12 p.m.           5^th place — Northern Essex (32-2) vs. Chaparrals (22-14)
2 p.m.             3^rd place — Loser of Game 13 vs. Loser Game 14
5 p.m.             Championship — Winner of Game 13 vs. Winner Game 14