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The Fort Report: Whittington, Christmas Shuttle Back and Forth

With the Pacers back in Indianapolis for a four-game homestand, Pacers head coach Frank Vogel thought it was a good time to bring the Blue & Gold's two players on D-League assignment with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants back into the fold with their parent club. Second-year forward/center Shayne Whittington spent the first two games of the homestand with the Pacers, while rookie forward Rakeem Christmas was in Indiana for the second pair of home games.

As a result, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants only had one Pacers assignee for each of their two games last week, but both Christmas and Whittington put together strong performances when they were in Fort Wayne.

On Thursday, Jan. 28, Christmas racked up 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting, four rebounds, two blocks, and two steals against the Canton Charge. Unfortunately, however, the rookie fouled out with 2:40 remaining and the Mad Ants fell to their division rivals, 106-101.

Three other players joined Christmas in double figures in the loss. NBA veteran John Lucas III had a team-high 26 points. Walter Lemon, Jr. added 19 points and five assists. Former Pacers training camp participant C.J. Fair also came up big, posting a double-double with 18 points and 16 rebounds.

While Christmas headed to Indianapolis after Thursday's game, Whittington rejoined the Mad Ants and helped lead them to a big home victory on Saturday night. The Western Michigan alum put together arguably his best performance of the season, recording a double-double with 26 points and 13 rebounds in a 116-111 win over the Maine Red Claws. Whittington went 10-for-16 from the field and even showcased an improved shooting stroke, knocking down 2-of-3 attempts from 3-point range.

Fair was again excellent in the victory, recording another double-double with 27 points and 14 rebounds.

Now 13-13 on the year, the Mad Ants are tied for third place in the Central Division, a half-game back of Canton for second place.

With both Christmas and Whittington back in Fort Wayne for the week, the Mad Ants are set to play three games this week. The Mad Ants will host the Red Claws tonight at 7:00 PM ET and then welcome the Charge on Friday, Feb. 5 at 7:30 PM. Then on Saturday, Feb. 6, the Mad Ants will travel to Grand Rapids for 7:00 PM showdown with the Drive.

Stay tuned to Pacers.com for continued updates on the Mad Ants, and make sure to check out Pacers.com/MadAntsTV » to watch all remaining regular season Mad Ants games free online.