Texans Push Past Hawks To Remain In First

LEVELLAND— Find a way to win.

The South Plains College Texans did just that in their final home game of the season, riding Deontae North's 20-point eight rebound performance to a 62-55 win over the Howard Hawks on Monday night at the Texan Dome.

"I wanted to end out the season on a bang in our last home game," North said. "My family flew out from California, and it's always good to play in front of the family and show out. Howard played scrappy and played tough, and we used our advantage inside, and did what we had to do to get the win."

Howard (15-12, 5-8) went on a 10-3 run to open the contest, but a 3-pointer from North with 12:20 remaining in the first half would tie the game a 10-10. Ibrahima Diagne would give the Texans their first lead of the game with a jumper at the 11:23 mark, before Diamante Langston converted at the bucket while being fouled, knocking down the free-throw to give South Plains a 16-12 lead with 9:30 left.

Che Bob, who finished with 11 points and eight rebounds, extended the Texans (20-7, 10-3) lead to five with a conversion at the rim to cap off a 14-2 run from South Plains at the 8:53 mark of the first half. The Texans would eventually take a 27-25 lead into the locker room at halftime, setting up a dog fight for both teams in the final 20 minutes.

"We had a slow start in the first half, but we eventually picked it up and did what we had to do," said Jerron Love, who who finished with 11 points for South Plains. "They threw a punch, and I felt after halftime we threw a punch back. We need to start throwing the first punch, because we know every team is going to be gunning for us."

South Plains went on a 7-2 run early in the second half to take a 34-30 lead coming out of the break. After both sides traded buckets over the first 12 minutes of the final stint, North threw a fist pump towards the Texans bench after connecting on a 3-pointer from the left corner with 7:12 remaining.

"We need to come out from the beginning with that chip on our shoulder," North said. "We know teams are coming for us just because the name on the front of our jerseys. I knew I had to step up and play big, and it's a really good feeling ending my last home game with a win, and doing what I was able to do for South Plains."

North would once again find success from behind the arc, knocking down another trey from the top of the key to give the Texans a 51-44 advantage with 5:10 to play. The Hawks would try to close the gap in the final minutes, but a two-handed slam from Montell McRae sealed the Hawks fate and sent the Texans home with a crucial seven-point victory to remain tied for first in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference.

"I thought we played really really lethargic," South Plains head coach Steve Green said. "I think a lot of what they did got us spread out, and I think we stood on the defensive end so long tonight, we just didn't much energy on the offensive side. Deontae got us off to a really good start and hit a couple shots, and he was a little more aggressive tonight than he has been. We're still tied for first, (with Odessa) and the first team that blinks finishes second."

The Texans are now set to square off with the Clarendon Bulldogs on Thursday, with tipoff set for 7:30 p.m.