The Plainsman Press - South Plains College

From Christmas Break to Conference Play...

Monica Rose, sports editor

The South Plains College men’s basketball team had used a 14-game winning streak during the past two months to jump into the thick of the race for the Western Junior College Athletic Conference Championship.

An 81-65 loss to league foe Howard College on Jan. 30 in Big Spring, but the Texans look to bounce back strong.

SPC jumped out to an early 9-5 lead, but Howard responded with 13-2 run to take back the lead, 25-14. SPC managed to pull ahead of the Hawks 52-51 with 8:43 left in the game, but Howard would not give in.

Steve Harley led SPC with 21 points, while Jeremy Baker and Kendall Clark each added eight points. Dwight Collins and Joe Harris both scored seven points, Jermaine Bolden scored five points, Termaine Snyder finished with four points, Tavon Nelson scored three points and Ramalho added two points.

The Texans extended their winning streak to 14 games on Jan. 26, with a 92-69 victory againts Clarendon College. The Texans controlled the game 45-32 at halftime. SPC had 11 of 12 players score.

Harley led SPC with 18 points and eight assists, Bolden added 14 points, Nelson had 13 points, and Baker and Victor Ramalho each added 11 points.

For Clarendon, Duran Brownlaw scored 17 points.

The SPC Texans won their 13consecutive game on, Jan. 23, downing Frank Phillips College, 90-68.

SPC led throughout most of the game and had a 42-38 lead at halftime. The Texans fought for the lead until the final nine minutes. SPC held a 62-59 advantage with 9:36 left, but finished the game on a 28-9 run that included 10 unanswered points during a stretch of less than a minute.

Harley again led SPC with 28 points. Bolden added 26, Nelson had 12, Baker scored 10 points, Ramalho had five points and eight rebounds, Collins chipped in four points, Clark and Harris each scored two points, and Snyder added one point. For Frank Phillips, Shaun Bowman had 16 points and Dremaine Townsend added 13.

The SPC easily crushed New Mexico Military Institute 75-35 on Jan. 19.

Both teams had trouble scoring in the first half. The Texans were 0-of-10 on 3-pointers in the first half, but still held a 30-17 lead at halftime.

The Texans had more success offensively in the second half, making 17 of their 29 shots and connecting on four 3-pointers

Baker added 13 points for SPC, while Harris had 12,Ramalho scored nine, Harley pitched in six, Collins had five, Bolden and Snyder each had four, Constantin Motnii and Clark both scored two, and Jarek Drozd had one point. For NMMI, Anthony Stotts scored 16 points.

The Texans also triumphed against Odessa College 76 -59 on Jan. 16. SPC had a 34-27 lead at halftime and stretched that to 10 early in the second half. Odessa managed to pull within three on two different occasions after that, but the Texans pulled away for the win.

Bolden led SPC with 14 points, while Baker and Ramalho each added 10. Clark and Nelson each scored nine more points, while Harris had eight points and Collins added six points. Deluis Ramirez led Odessa with 22 points.

SPC wrapped up its Florida trip during the Christmas break with a 98-77 victory against the Jacksonville Celtics on Jan. 6.

SPC raced to a 53-32 half time lead, and all 12 SPC players scored in the game.

Harley led the way with 21 points.

The Texans upset No. 6 Daytona Beach Community College on Jan. 4, in Florida. The win was the ninth in a row for the Texans.

The Texans trailed 40-35 at halftime, but outscored Daytona 41-26 in the second half to pull out a 76-66 victory.

Harley led SPC with 23 points, while Bolden added 16 points.