No. 3 Odessa holds off No. 22 Texans 78-72 Monday

ODESSA — The South Plains College men's basketball team dropped a conference road matchup Monday night, falling to No. 3 Odessa College 78-72 at the OC Sports Center.

The loss moves SPC to 22-7 on the year and 10-5 in league play, as the Texans will look to secure their spot in the postseason with a win on Thursday at Midland at 7:30 p.m.

South Plains shot over 48 percent from the field, and knocked down seven 3s, but struggled at the free throw line, going 25 of 42 from the charity stripe. Ismail Habib led the Texans with 21 points, dropping in six of 10 shots, and was five of 6 from distance over 23 minutes.

Christian Coleman netted 14 points and four boards, while Kalifa Sakho finished with 11 points and three rebounds coming off the bench. The Texans tallied a slight advantage on the glass, outrebounding the Wranglers 39-35, but Odessa would outscore SPC 26-18 inside the paint.

Turnovers proved to be an achilles heel for the Texans, turning the ball over 15 times, which resulted in 23 points on the offensive end for Odessa. Dontrell Hewlett led the Wranglers with 18 points and five rebounds, while Dian Wright-Forde finished with 16 and Kiree Huie totaled 10 points and four boards.

With a win on Thursday, the Texans will secure their spot in the postseason, which will get underway March 8-11 at the Tiger Pit at Frenship High School at the NJCAA Region V Tournament.