Four Texans score in double figures, No. 15 South Plains drums NMMI 94-65 Monday

LEVELLAND — Four Texans scored in double figures Monday night as the No. 15-ranked South Plains College men's basketball team drummed New Mexico Military Institute 94-65 at the Texan Dome.

South Plains improves to 18-5 on the year and 6-3 in the WJCAC and will be back on the hardwood Thursday when they host Howard College at 7:30 p.m. at the Dome. The contest will stream live at spctexans.com, and admission to the game is free.

"We made shots tonight and found a rhythm, and now we have to take a step forward and get ready for a Howard team that beat us in the first matchup," South Plains College head coach Hayden Sowers said. "We pressed up on the defensively and switched everything, and it fell in our favor tonight. We needed to gain some confidence, and our guys know how to win, and it's up to these guys to take the game plan in between these lines for 40 minutes and have the mindset of going 1-0."

South Plains' Jaden Harris led all scorers with 21 points and five assists, connecting on four of five shots from the field, and was a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line. Ismail Habib netted 19 points, dished out a game-high seven assists, and pulled in four rebounds, while Malek Abdelgowad netted 13 points and 10 boards over 25 minutes.

"We wanted to come out and move the basketball tonight, and get the defense moving so we could attack downhill and create shots," Harris said. "They tried to play slow, but we were able to press them and create some turnovers which helped us on the offensive end. It's all about how you respond, and we were focused on going 1-0 and learning from our mistakes from the previous game."

Jalen McDonald poured in 11 points coming off the bench as South Plains shot a 59.3 percent clip from the field and knocked down 10 of 20 shots from the 3-point line. SPC controlled the interior paint, tallying 40 points inside the paint, and chipped in 15 points off turnovers.

"We did a good job sharing the ball on offense, and everyone was moving and we played as a complete unit tonight," McDonald said. "Going into the game, coach Sowers wanted us to focus on the defensive side of the ball, and I feel we came out and gave our best effort all around. We beat ourselves the last two games, and were focused on finding our rhythm and playing together for 40 minutes."