FORT DODGE, IOWA -- The Ellsworth men's basketball team heads to the holiday break after a come-from-behind win at Iowa Central CC on Saturday.  The Panthers, thanks to 6 straight points from Shawn Fulcher in the final minutes, defeated Iowa Central, 87-84, to up their record to 13-2 after the first half of the regular season.  The victory was their 3rd in a row and leaves them just 2 wins shy of last season's total.

Fulcher got his first start of the year in the previous game -- a win against Southwestern when he erupted for 25 points -- and, in the game with the Tritons, the freshman guard poured in a season-best 33 points.  With the Panthers trailing 83-81 Fulcher made a layup to tie the score, then hit a pair of free throws to give ECC the lead.  His final basket of the game finished out the scoring and let Ellsworth notch the victory.  "We are grateful to escape Fort Dodge and get the win over our rival, Iowa Central," said Panthers head coach Bryan Bender.  "We had great community support and are very thankful for the extra lift from the fans that made the hour trip, led by one of sponsors, Timbukbru."

Fulcher and Jordan Glenn-Hawkins combined for 58 of ECC's points -- 33 from Fulcher and 25 from Glenn-Hawkins, who drained 5 3-pointers and pulled down 5 rebounds.  Fulcher was 13-of-20 from the field and 5-of-6 at the foul line, including the 2 late clutch FTs.  He added 6 rebounds and 3 assists.  Bender praised Fulcher for "dominating the offensive end of the floor" and Glenn-Hawkins for "hitting huge shots and grabbing a few rebounds in critical moments."

"Anytime you can win a conference game, especially one on the road against a rival, is a huge boost and we finished the game with maturity," Bender added.

The Panthers were able to regroup after a slow start that saw ICCC lead by 7 points early.  Ellsworth took a 47-41 lead at the half and neither team was able to pull away in the final period.  Iowa Central was on top, 78-75, with just over 6 minutes remaining.  

Ellsworth won the rebound battle, 47-32, led by Issakha Niang's 8 boards.  Dior Davis had 7 assists and Niang and Rich Ashu both blocked a pair of shots.  

With over 2 weeks until their next game, Bender likes where his team is as it goes into the break in the schedule.  "We are a top 10 team, 3-1 in the league and ended on a 3-game win streak.  We will be completely healthy again come January and I can't wait to get back to work in 2023."

ECC, averaging 95.9 points a game at the midpoint of the schedule, will host Iowa Lakes on Jan. 4 and then faces an early showdown at Kirkwood Jan. 11.  Iowa Lakes and Kirkwood are each 3-0 in conference play; Ellsworth is a half-game behind at 3-1.