Lady Texans pick up crucial conference win, outlast Western Texas 60-54

LEVELLAND — Bella Belong scored a game-high 17 points as the South Plains College women's basketball team picked up a crucial win in league play Thursday, besting Western Texas 60-54 at the Texan Dome.

The Lady Texans improve to 5-4 in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference and will be in for another test come Monday when they travel to Clarendon for a 5:45 p.m. tip against the Lady Bulldogs. The contest will stream live at spctexans.com.

"I thought our kids started finishing plays in the second half," South Plains head coach Ara Baten said. "I thought our bigs played with great energy, they played with good pace, and they were more aggressive in the second half. We didn't defend as well as we needed to in the first 20 minutes, and I thought overall the kids handled the ball screen defense better in the later part of the game."

Belong finished seven of 11 from the field to go along with 13 boards over 26 minutes. Jennifer Silva netted 13 points and six boards, connecting on six of nine shots from the floor. Sahir Alizada chipped in eight points and five rebounds as the Lady Texans shot 37.9 percent from the field in the contest.

"I think this part of the season is the most fun part of the year," Baten said. "We're definitely playing for something, and if we would have lost tonight, it would have made things a lot more difficult for us. A win tonight makes the next game at Clarendon that much more important, and it's going to be another tough test for us on the road."