Koang buckets 16 as #2 Lady Texans rout Western Texas 68-45 Saturday

LEVELLAND — The second-ranked South Plains College women's basketball team utilized a balanced offensive attack with three players notching double figures as the Lady Texans routed Western Texas College 68-45 Saturday at the Texan Dome.

The Lady Texans move to 13-0 on the season and 2-0 in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference and will close out the fall semester against Dodge City on Dec. 15 at 3 p.m. at the Texan Dome.

"We played three games in five days against three good teams, and our girls showed a lot of toughness battling each time out," South Plains head coach Cayla Petree said. "Our mental toughness to stay focused and get ready for each individual opponent shows how they are maturing as a team. Coach Davis does a great job and I thought we settled for some contested shots early on and found a way to be a little more patient throughout the game and find some dropdowns for  higher percentage layups."

South Plains sophomore center Ruth Koang led all scorers with 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the 6-foot-5 product from New York was 6 of 8 from the floor and 4-for-5 from the free throw line. TCU signee Caroline Germond dropped in 12 points for the Lady Texans on 4 of 6 shooting while also dishing out seven assists and picked two steals.

Asia McCoy chipped in 10 points and snagged 11 rebounds, seven on the defensive end, finishing 3 of 7 from the field and was 4 of 6 from the charity stripe coming off the bench for South Plains. The Lady Texans shot a 44.6 percent clip from the field while outscoring Western Texas 42-16 in the paint and netted 12 points on second-chance opportunities. South Plains forced 31 turnovers on the defensive end resulting in 25 points on the offensive end of the floor.

"Being 2-0 in our conference is all that matters and getting better each day is our main focus," Petree said. "Getting our freshmen more confident and learning the set plays and game management is critical, and for where we are right now I'm extremely happy, and I enjoy coaching them."

Shuntorri Rodgers led Western Texas with 13 points and four rebounds, knocking down 5 of 17 attempts was 3-for-8 from the 3-point line over 28 minutes. Kimberly Best chipped in nine points on 4 of 4 shooting as the Lady Westerners shot 33.3 percent from the field and 29.4 percent from distance.