No. 11 Texans pull away from Midland in second half

The victory improves South Plains to 13-2 overall and, more importantly, 2-0 in conference play with eighth-ranked Howard due to visit the Texan Dome at 3 p.m. Saturday.

South Plains appears to continue to improve their shooting as the Texans made 25-of-54 shots from the field Thursday night.  

The Texans found themselves in a hole early.

Down by seven points four minutes into the game, the Texans called their first timeout with the score 11-4.

Coming out of the timeout, Moreira picked up a steal and Devonte Smith completed the fast break.  Moments later Kendahl Amerson picked up a steal and then nailed one of his three 3-point baskets to bring the Texans back to within two.

Neither team led by more than four points for the remainder of the first half.

The Texans started much stronger in the second half, methodically stretching out to an 11-point lead less than six minutes into the second period.

Just past the midway point, South Plains owned a 12-point lead.

The Chaparrals (10-3, 1-1) briefly made the game interesting, getting to within seven points with plenty of time – 8:25 – remaining on the game clock.

Ninety seconds later, Midland was still within nine points of the defending NJCAA Champions, but would get no closer as South Plains would finish the game with a 10-0 scoring run to claim the 19-point victory.

South Plains has now won 20 consecutive games inside the friendly confines of the Texan Dome, with their last loss coming Feb. 10, 2011.  The Texans will have another tough test and put that streak on the line Saturday when eighth-ranked Howard College comes to town for a 3 p.m. matchup with the Texans in the Texan Dome in a game sponsored by McDonald's of Levelland.

Live video and stats of the Texans 3 p.m. tip against the Hawks will be available at www.spctexans.com.

Mike Mamantov of Ameriprise Financial sponsored Thursday evening's game, providing a fajita dinner for all SPC employees in attendance.  Mr. Mamantov also had $100 door prizes at each halftime.  SPC rodeo coach Kerry Doster was the winner of the first drawing.  Lynne Cleavinger won the $100 bill during the men's halftime.

Midland (10-3, 1-1)
Colan Weasby 2-4 0-0 6, Tiegbe Bamba 1-9 0-2 2, Gary Akbar 5-9 1-3 11, Willis Nicholson 0-0 0-0 0, Kiwi Gardner 2-11 8-11 13, Corey Hilliard 1-5 0-0 3, Justin Coleman 3-9 1-3 8, Ede Egharevba 2-9 0-0 5, Brandon Lucas 0-1 0-0 0, DJ Billingsley 0-0 0-0 0, Aly Ahmed 3-6 0-0 6. Totals 19-63 10-19 54

South Plains (13-2, 2-0 )
Terrence Durham 2-3 0-0 5, Yanick Moreira 8-17 10-14 26, Jamaal Samuel 0-0 0-0 0,Darrel Lucky 0-0 0-0 0, Devonte Smith 4-13 4-6 12, Malik Nichols 0-1 0-0 0, Kendahl Amerson 4-8 4-4 15, Roderick Lawrence 1-3 0-2 2, Ryan Martin 5-8 1-4 11, Michael Karena 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 25-54 19-30 73
SCORE BY PERIODS    1st    2nd    TOTAL
Midland                            33    21    54
South Plains                     34    39    73

FG%: Midland .302, South Plains .463. 3-pt FG:Midland 6-24 (Weasby 2-4, Bamba 0-4, Gardner 1-5, Hilliard 1-2, Coleman 1-1, Egharevba 1-7, Lucas 0-1), South Plains 4-11 (Durham 1-1, Moreira 0-3, Smith 0-1, Amerson 3-5, Lawrence 0-1). Rebounds: Midland 38 (Bamba 9), South Plains 51 (Moreira 12). Fouls Midland 24, South Plains 21. Fouled out: Coleman Amerson . Technical: Midland Coach, Gardner, AMERSON. Assists: Midland 8 (Gardner 3), South Plains 11 (Durham 4). Steals: Midland 8 (Akbar 2), South Plains 8 (Amerson 3). Blocked shots: Midland 0, South Plains 7 (Moreira 3). Turnovers: Midland 19, South Plains 22.