Texans remain atop WJCAC standings following 78-64 win over Frank Phillips

LEVELLAND – South Plains College got double digits from five players and the NJCAA seventh-ranked Texans retained a share of the lead in the WJCAC standings by defeating Frank Phillips College 78-64 Thursday night at the Texan Dome.

Michael Karena came off the bench to lead the team with 13 points, tying his career high. Sekou Harris and Malik Nichols each scored 12, Ryan Martin added 11, and Andre Spightchipped in with 10 as the Texans moved to 24-4 overall and 11-3 in league play to remain tied with Howard atop the standings. 

South Plains controlled much of the game, but again had moments when they squandered big leads. 

The Texans led by 10 at the 13-minute mark of the first half.  Five minutes later, their lead was cut to two before racing back out to a 14-point lead and 10-point halftime advantage. 

Frank Phillips (15-13, 5-9) again cut the Texan lead to two points in the opening minutes of the second half.  Again, the Texans had a strong response and the Plainsmen never got closer than seven. 

Following Thursday's slate of games, South Plains and Howard remain only a game ahead of New Mexico and 1 ½-games ahead of Odessa in the league standings.  Western Texas lurks two games behind.  South Plains, Howard, New Mexico, and Western Texas each have two games remaining, while Odessa has only one in a race that will stay interesting to the very end. 

Next up for the Texans will be a road trip to Midland Monday, Feb. 24.  Tip off versus the Chaparrals is scheduled for 7:45 p.m.  Live video of the action can be found atwww.spctexans.com, and fans can also listen over the air on KLVT 1230 AM radio andwww.klvtradio.com. 

Frank Phillips College (15-13, 5-9)
Stan Whittaker 5-10 3-4 13, Quame Edwards 3-4 0-1 8, Darrell Robinson 3-7 0-0 6, Emmanuel Johnson 9-12 0-0 21, Terrence Brown 1-3 1-1 3, Chris Hall 0-6 0-0 0, Chris Tawiah 6-11 1-1 13, Rokas Paulauskas 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 27-54 5-7 64

South Plains (24-4, 11-3)
Andre Spight 4-12 1-2 10, Billydee Williams 0-0 0-0 0, Sekou Harris 3-6 5-8 12, Malik Nichols 5-10 2-2 12, Clayton Jones 0-0 0-0 0, Emmanuel Omogbo 0-1 0-0 0, Roderick Lawrence 3-6 2-2 9, Cedrick McAfee 1-6 1-2 4, Ryan Martin 5-9 1-3 11, Michael Karena 5-8 3-5 13, Pedro Konofino 3-5 1-3 7. Totals 29-63 16-27 78

FG%: Frank Phillips College .500, South Plains .460. 3-pt FG:Frank Phillips College 5-13 (Whittaker 0-1, Edwards 2-3, Johnson 3-5, Hall 0-4), South Plains 4-16 (Spight 1-5, Harris 1-2, Omogbo 0-1, Lawrence 1-3, McAfee 1-4, Konofino 0-1). Rebounds: Frank Phillips College 21 (Tawiah 9), South Plains 33 (Lawrence 6). Fouls Frank Phillips College 18, South Plains 14. Fouled out: Johnson . Technical: none. Assists: Frank Phillips College 17 (Robinson 5), South Plains 13 (Nichols 5). Steals: Frank Phillips College 6 (Whittaker 2, Johnson 2, Tawiah 2), South Plains 15 (Spight 5). Blocked shots: Frank Phillips College 5 (Tawiah 2), South Plains 3 (Nichols 1, Lawrence 1, Karena 1). Turnovers: Frank Phillips College 23, South Plains 12.