Fifth-ranked Texans stunned by Hill College in Region 5 semifinal

LUBBOCK – The fifth-ranked South Plains College Texans will not be playing for the Region 5 Championship and have left their NJCAA National Tournament fate to a selection committee as they were routed 86-69 by Hill College in the Region 5 semifinal game Friday afternoon at the Rip Griffin Center.

Hill (25-7) will advance to play New Mexico for the Region 5 Championship at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, with the winner automatically advancing to the National tournament in Hutchinson, Kan.  The loser will also advance as a 'zone qualifier.' 

The NJCAA will make their 'at large' selections early next week and the fact the Texans finished the season ranked inside the top-five and boast a 27-5 overall record bodes well for their chances of being selected and returning to Hutchinson for the second time in three years. 

South Plains was dominated basically from start-to-finish Friday afternoon, holding only one lead for the game.  

After freshman Andre Spight made the first bucket of the contest, Hill went on a 26-9 run to take a 15-point advantage.  The Texans would rally to within seven by halftime. 

Following intermission, Hill again took control of the game and led by as many as 24 points. 

This year's Texan team finished 13-3 in league play, winning the school's 12^th Western Junior College Athletic Conference championship along the way.  They started the year ranked ninth in the NJCAA preseason poll and then quickly jumped to second as they won their first 13 games of the season.  On Jan. 22, they claimed the top spot in the poll, a position they held for two weeks.

South Plains (27-5)
Michael Karena 3-6 3-5 9, Ryan Martin 4-13 4-5 12, Roderick Lawrence 1-7 0-0 2, Cedrick McAfee 3-6 0-0 7, Emmanuel Omogbo 4-8 2-6 10, Clayton Jones 3-5 0-0 8, Sekou Harris2-7 0-0 5, Billydee Williams 1-4 0-0 3, Andre Spight 5-14 1-2 13, Pedro Konofino 0-3 0-2 0. Totals 26-73 10-20 69

Hill (25-7)
Taylor Luster 2-3 0-0 5, Tramique Sutherland 6-13 14-16 26, Ke'Von Rice 1-1 0-2 2, Kristian Keys 2-4 1-2 5, Xavier Habersham 2-6 2-2 8, Saxton Cotton 0-0 0-0 0, Coris Williams Jr. 2-5 0-0 5, Jared Johnson 8-18 0-0 23, Tyrell Bellot-Green 3-12 5-5 12, Mike Chandler 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 26-64 22-27 86

FG%: South Plains .356, Hill .406. 3-pt FG:South Plains 7-27 (Martin 0-1, Lawrence 0-2, McAfee 1-4, Jones 2-3, Harris 1-2, Williams 1-4, Spight 2-10, Konofino 0-1), Hill 12-30 (Luster 1-2, Sutherland 0-2, Keys 0-1, Habersham 2-5, Williams Jr. 1-2, Johnson 7-13, Bellot-Green 1-5). Rebounds: South Plains 42 (Martin 10), Hill 42 (Chandler 10). Fouls South Plains 20, Hill 17. Fouled out: Lawrence . Technical: Martin. Assists: South Plains 11 (Martin 4, Harris 4), Hill 15 (Sutherland 8). Steals: South Plains 5 (Spight 3), Hill 6 (Luster 2). Blocked shots: South Plains 2 (Lawrence 1, McAfee 1), Hill 2 (Johnson 1, Chandler 1). Turnovers: South Plains 7, Hill 7.