CRESTON, IOWA -- Chase Smith came off the Ellsworth bench to drill seven 3-pointers and his career-high 21-point effort led to a 72-54 ICCAC road win for the Panthers at Southwestern CC Friday night. Smith, whose previous season-best was 10 points against the Waldorf JV, paced a strong bench night for the Panthers, whose reserves outscored the Spartans, 45-21.
One game after their lowest shooting percentage of the year, Ellsworth had their best percentage, hitting 57.1 percent from the floor and they made 13-of-21 3s, 61.9 percent. ECC pounded SWCC on the glass, outrebounding the home team, 43-18, led by Rich Ashu's 8 boards. Ashu also contributed 11 bench points. Ra'mir Scott was the other double-digit scorer for the winners with 14.
Smith, in his second year with the Panthers, did his damage in just 16 minutes and was a perfect 7-for-7 from deep.
ECC rolled to a 35-21 lead at the halftime break and widened the advantage by the end of the contest, outscoring the Spartans, 37-33, after the break.
The win evens the ECC conference record at 1-1 and lifts them to a 10-3 mark overall. They will play Northeast (Neb.) at Dittmer Gym next Wednesday night.