The Ellsworth Panthers went 1-1 at Elmwood/Plum City’s invitational, winning their first game by a score of 66-60 against Cadott on Wednesday and then losing in overtime against the Alma-Pepin Eagles on Thursday, 62-55.

It’s been a rough start to the season for the Panthers who opened the season at 0-5, but things have been turning around for them lately, winning 3 of their last 6 going into game two of the double-header in Elmwood.

After winning a tight game on Wednesday, Thursday’s finale was just as close, with both teams going back and forth for the lead over much of the afternoon.

The Panthers got on the board first with a field goal by Omar Coulson. The Eagles tied it up, but Parker Woodland retook the lead with some fancy footwork and a jump shot for two more.

Approaching mid period, the game was still virtually deadlocked with Ellsworth holding a one-point advantage at 8-7. Both teams continued to play excellent defense, and with 8:45 left on the clock, Alma took their first lead of the game.

The Panthers answered right back on a Woodland steal and fast break for two, and soon it was knotted up at 12-12 with 6:30 to go in the first.

That’s the way things went all afternoon, point-for-point. Alma sunk a three so Coulson sank a three. A trio of fast breaks, two by Woodland and one by Coulson, put the Panthers out in front by six with just under 3:00 remaining, prompting another Alma timeout. Then Alma got three of those back at the line and sunk back-to-back field goals to take a one-point lead at 24-23 going into the half.

The Panthers struck first in the second, with George Rohl tying it up from the charity stripe and following it up with a steal that resulted in a Coulson fast break for a two-point lead.

The Eagles got the lead back briefly with a three-pointer, but Braydon Anderson sank a contested basket for two. Alma drained a three, then Nash Kuhl answered back with one of his own, and with 12:20 remaining, it was 33-all.

It remained a one-score game throughout the second period, with Ellsworth maintaining a mostly steady 1-3 point lead.

With 5:45 left on the clock, Alma grabbed a one-point lead, but Coulson’s big game continued with a three-pointer to retake a two-point advantage. The Eagles would tie it up from the line, and going into the final 4:30, it was a dead heat at 45-45.

Alma played from behind almost throughout after that and as the clock ticked under 2:00, the Panthers finally got that extra score to make it a two-possession game. It was a fastbreak and layup by, who else, Coulson.

With 0:58 on the clock, the Eagles got a good look at a couple of threes, and they made the Panthers pay, pulling within two at 52-50 and prompting an Ellsworth timeout. Both teams played the foul game, and finally, with 0:02 seconds left on the clock, Alma ended up at the line with a chance to tie it and send the game into overtime. They sank both shots, and the officials put 4:00 back on the clock.

The first rule of overtime is that you want to strike first; it increases your chances of winning dramatically to begin by playing with a lead. Unfortunately, Ellsworth did not score first, but they did tie it up immediately with 3:06 to go.

Alma ended up back at the line twice after that, sinking 3-4. Some good defensive plays by Ellsworth, including a timely block by Rohl from under the basket to interrupt a layup and help their cause, but they just couldn’t get the points they needed on the board. The game would end in a loss for the Panthers at 62-55.

Head Coach Derek Staley says if there’s one area of the game that could’ve changed the course of the tournament for them, it was shots from the stripe.

“It was a tough one. We lost the game at the free throw line, going 6 for 18. We did not shoot well all weekend, but that really hurt us in the second game. We also need to clean up our rebounding,” Staley said. “We have plenty of positives to take away. Any time you are in close games, it's a great opportunity to learn from the pressure.” 

The Middle Border season continues this Thursday when the Panthers will travel to Osceola to play the undefeated Chieftains at 7 p.m.

EPC loses two in home invitational

The Elmwood-Plum City Wolves were defeated by the Alma-Pepin Eagles on Wednesday 52-38 and by the Cadott Hornets on Thursday 69-66.

It was a tough couple of losses, but the Wolves played hard. Game one got away from them, but game two was very winnable and came down to the final seconds of the game, which lasted for 20 minutes like all close games in high school basketball these days seemingly.

The Hornets jumped out to an early 9-4 lead prompting the Wolves to take their first time out to talk over their game plan. It didn’t seem to help though, and at mid period, they were down 20-6. Cadott continued to push out to their biggest lead of the period at 26-10 before Elmwood rallied, and rallied hard.

With just under 7:30 remaining, EPC went on a 3:00 11-0 tear to make it a five-point game at 26-21. It started with Blake Allen pushing through defenders while getting fouled for a two-point layup. He backed that up by sinking the free throw to make it three.

Allen grabbed the following rebound on a Hornets missed shot, and Logan Auth took it to the net for two more. Allen wasn’t done getting physical as he hit the deck while laying out for a two-point field goal. A nice defensive tip on a Cadott pass by Aiden Maxwell got the Wolves the ball back yet again, and he capitalized on that by putting in a two-pointer of his own.

The Hornets would push back out to a 15-point lead at 36-21 with 2:00 left in the opening period, but a three-pointer by Riley Bechel and a nice hook shot layup by Lucas Glaus got a chunk of that back. Ultimately, the game would go into halftime with the Hornets up by 12 at 38-26.

EPC got on the board first in the second period with some beautiful teamwork as Maxwell reversed it to Allen out on the perimeter and then posted up under the basket for the pass. Allen put it on him, and he wasted no time putting it in.

The game started to get away from them again for a little bit, and with 10:30 to play, Cadott had its biggest lead of the game at 55-37.

The Wolves didn’t quit and they just kept chipping away at that lead. The first step to their improbable comeback was an 11-3 run to make it 58-48 with 6:00 to go. Then Allen hit a deep three-pointer from a pace off the top of the key to shrink that 10-point lead to seven.

At the 3:30 mark, it was 61-55, and the Wolves weren’t holding anything back. Glaus hit the court hard after going up for a layup that made it a four-point game, but he popped right up and hustled down court.

The game would go shot-for-shot over the last couple minutes. The Wolves created some chances for themselves to tie it up late, but alas, they just couldn’t get over the hump with the game ending in a loss at 69-66.

Whatever beleaguered the Wolves in the beginning was mostly behind them as the second half began. Discounting the opening half period of play, EPC outscored Cadott throughout. They finished period one outscoring them 16-12 and they did it again in the second half, outscoring the Hornets 40-31, overcoming an 18-point deficit and putting themselves in a position to win.

Head Coach Kyle Webb says there’s one thing they need to focus on that will carry them over the top in close games like this that go down to the wire.

“We have to make our easy shots and free throws,” Webb said. "I'm honestly not sure what I expect for the rest of the season as we have not played consistently as a team, but that is what it will take to get the wheels turning and win some conference games. We need to play as a team consistently.”

Next up for Elmwood-Plum City is an away game on Friday against conference rivals the Boyceville Bulldogs. Tip off for that game is at 7:15 p.m.