Peter Dindinger – NMMI Sports Press
Not very many college basketball players have the luxury of winning three regular season conference championships and appearing in two NCAA tournaments.
Chancellor Ellis accomplished that feat with two different schools during his career.
After graduating from St. Andrew's School in Barrington, Rhode Island, Ellis began his collegiate career at the New Mexico Military Institute.
Ellis was drawn to Roswell after former teammate Andre Barry attended the Institute and later got a chance to play at the University of Rhode Island.
During the 2015-2016 season, Ellis played in all 29 games for the Broncos as he averaged 14.9 points per game.
During his fifth game, Ellis scored a season-high 39 points in a 92-91 win over Just Hoops Prep on Nov. 6, 2015.
Ellis tallied double-digit scoring figures in 21 games with the Broncos. He shot 41.8 percent from the field and 78.4 percent from the free throw line.
On the boards, he grabbed 42 rebounds and had 21 assists and 11 steals for a NMMI squad that finished 9-20 overall.
Ellis recalled one instance as a cadet where he was disciplined for having his trash can on the wrong side of his dorm and he had to march for three hours.
"I did JUCO for one year and I wouldn't trade it for the world because NMMI changed my life. It turned me from a young man to a man," Ellis said. "When I got to NMMI it was life changing because I didn't know I had to shave and shave my head.
"I felt like the hardest part was gonna be being a cadet. You have to follow the rankings (of the corps). It taught me a lot."
Current Bronco head coach Sean Schooley and former assistant/associate coach Ralph Davis taught Ellis a lot about the game.
Davis is now the Director of Operations for the University of New Mexico men's basketball team after having spent nine years at NMMI.
"Coach Davis and coach Schooley taught me a lot. When you are at a military school it is about working," Ellis said. "They don't cut corners with us and stuff like that. We struggled a little bit that season, but we competed every game.
"That league, at that time, to me is the best in the country. It was a great experience. I wouldn't trade it for the world, honestly."
At the end of his freshman season, Ellis was looking to attend school closer to home. He had received an offer to Virginia Tech, but he would have to be redshirted.
That is when coach Davis told Ellis about New Mexico State.
Former NMSU head coach Paul Weir gave Ellis an opportunity to make an immediate impact as a sophomore at the Division I level.
Ellis took the offer and entered another life changing experience.
NMSU had loads of talent that season as it finished 28-6 overall and 11-3 in the Western Athletic Conference. The Aggies put together a 20-game winning streak early in the season.
After defeating California State University-Bakersfield 70-60 to win the WAC tourney, the 14th-seeded Aggies took on third-seeded Baylor in the opening round of the NCAA tournament.
NMSU had a two-point lead at halftime, but ended up losing the contest, 91-73.
"That New Mexico State team is probably the best team, talent wise, I've ever been on in my life," Ellis said. "We had talent throughout the whole team. I was the youngest on the (squad).
"We got to the tournament. We were favored to win. We were winning for the first 34 minutes of the game."
Coach Weir departed NMSU for UNM the following season to take the head coaching job.
Ellis began looking at schools closer to home like Hofstra and St. John's, but that's when coach Davis called again and mentioned Prairie View A&M.
"The only reason why I left New Mexico State was because Paul Weir left," Ellis said. "Coach Davis has not been wrong yet. So, I ended up going to Prairie View."
Prairie View A&M went 19-13 overall and 14-4 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference this past season before the coronavirus pandemic cut the season short and eliminated the team's postseason chances.
The Panthers were on the verge of winning their second-straight SWAC tourney and making another NCAA tournament.
As a redshirt senior, Ellis made 23 starts averaging 7.3 points a game. He tallied 39 rebounds and 38 assists along with four steals and four blocks.
He scored a season-high 29 points during a 73-69 loss to UCF back on Nov. 9, 2019.
Prairie View A&M turned a lot of heads during Ellis's junior year after it transformed an 1-11 start to a 22-13 overall record.
The Panthers went 17-1 in the SWAC and later defeated Texas Southern, 92-86, in the conference title game to get an automatic berth in the NCAA tourney.
It was Prairie View's second conference tourney title in program history and the first in 21 years.
On March 19, 2019, the Panthers made the First Four, their first NCAA tourney appearance since 1998, and lost a tough game to Farleigh Dickinson, 82-76.
"I'm honestly blessed. I played Division I for three years and I won three championships and it would have been three NCAA tournament appearances," Ellis added.
After graduation, Ellis hopes to continue playing the game that has given him some unforgettable memories.
"I am still working out, training, trying to figure out what I'm gonna do next," Ellis said. "I do want to play. Right now, I'm trying to find an agent that can represent me and help me get to the best opportunities."
At the end of his five-year collegiate career, NMMI will always have a special place in Ellis's heart.
"They teach you adversity, they teach you discipline, and they teach you how to stay humble at all times," Ellis said about NMMI. "I miss the people at NMMI.
"At that time, I was a freshman, I was 19 and those are the best times of your life, regardless of where you're at."