But, again, the Eagles responded. Quincy Fulton got open underneath for an easy basket. Kellams was fouled immediately after and headed to the line with 7 ticks still showing on the clock. The senior calmly made both of the charity tosses to secure the win.

“The kids were huge down the stretch,” Thompson said. “They didn’t panic, they took care of the basketball and made their free throws. They responded very well.”

It was a close, back-and-forth game from the outset.

The first half was – in a word – brutal. Neither team played well or shot well. They combined for just 27 total points, while turning the ball over 14 times.

The Eagles led by eight points at one time, 15-7, but Jake Niebrugge hit a three and Jacob Warner scored after grabbing an offensive rebound to get the Hearts within 15-12 at intermission.

“We made the game on the offensive end way too difficult,” Thompson noted. “Against a zone, there are going to be open areas to attack. But we just kept throwing the ball from sideline to sideline. We didn’t do a good job against it at all.

“But maybe that’s my fault,” the veteran coach added. “Maybe I need to simplify things a little and just let them be basketball players.”

During intermission, Thompson did stress the importance of moving on offense. One minute into the second half, he wasn’t seeing that and brought in five reserves off the bench.

“I needed to send a message,” Thompson said. “After talking about it at halftime, they came out and just stood around. We can’t have that.”

The reserves immediately made an impact. Max Flack turned in a three-point play, Kellams converted a Newton turnover into a strong drive to the basket for a layup and Max Buzzard drilled a three from the corner, capping an 8-0 run that put EHS on top, 20-15.

Newton got back to within one point, but Kellams had a three-point play to give the Hearts a 26-22 edge heading into the final eight minutes.

“The bench really came through,” Thompson noted. “They came in and sparked us in that third quarter. They played solid and got us going. I am very pleased with those guys.”

The Eagles stole back the momentum when the fourth quarter began. Both Bergbower and Hayden Mulvey scored four points in the first 2½ minutes, sparking an 8-0 run that put the guests ahead, 30-26, with 5:30 to play.

Effingham tied the game, 30-30, after Cole Phillips scored on back-to-back possessions. The two teams traded baskets then until Kellams connected on his shot from behind the arc that put the Hearts on top to stay, 35-33, with 1:22 left.

“KJ was huge for us tonight,” Thompson said. “That three and those late free throws were big. I thought he played a solid game.

“All six of those free throws were from guys that don’t typically shoot a lot of free throws,” Thompson added. “But they stepped up and knocked them down. They really came through for us. They were awesome.”

Bergbower scored a game-high 15 points for the Eagles, who dipped to 5-11 for the season.

Kellams was the only Hearts player to reach double figures, finishing with 10 points – all in the second half. Niebrugge scored seven and Phillips and Flack both added six.

The team shot much better in the second half, making 9-of-16 attempts. For the game, they were 14-for-33, a 42 percent clip. They were 3-for-11 from long range and 10-for-12 from the line.

Effingham improved to 6-11. They will return to action Thursday, hosting Taylorville in an Apollo Conference game. The Hearts, who are 2-2 in the league, defeated the Tornados 50-46 in an earlier meeting.