HUTCHINSON, Kansas — The second-seeded South Plains College men's basketball team erased an eight-point halftime deficit thanks to a dominating second half from Jaborri McGhee and Malique Ewin as the Texans outlasted No. 15 Panola 80-76 in Monday's Sweet 16 matchup at the Hutchinson Sports Arena.
The Texans improve to 32-2 on the season and advance to Wednesday's quarterfinal matchup against No. 7 Triton, who defeated No. 10 Trinity Valley on Monday night. Tip is slated for 2:15 p.m. and the contest will air live on ESPN+.
"We found a way to win," South Plains head coach Hayden Sowers said. "We didn't play our best basketball, but nobody really cares right now. The only thing that matters is finding a way to keep going. I think what you saw in the first half was a team that was a little bit nervous, and Panola got to play their first game yesterday and get their nerves out of the way. Panola played with a lot of confidence, and credit to our guys for coming out in the second half and finding a way to win."
Panola came out swinging as Jonah Hinton poured in 14 points in the front half as the Ponies went eight of 16 from the 3-point line and shot a 45.9 percent clip to begin the contest. McGhee netted 14 of his 22 points in the first half as the Texans shot just 37.4 percent in the first 20 minutes.
The Texans would answer back in the first 90 seconds of the back half as Ewin capped an 8-0 run from the Texans with a jumper from seven feet to deadlock the game at 47 apiece. Panola responded with a 6-2 run and took a 53-49 lead at the 16:08 mark on a 3 from Hinton. South Plains would return fire as Jermahri Hill gave the Texans a 54-53 lead on a two-handed slam with just under 15 minutes to play.
"Our guys haven't panicked all year," Sowers said. "When you have really good players, there's really no need to panic. Our guys stayed together and refused to lose, and found a way to get to 1-0 on the day, which is the most important thing. Jaborri controlled the game and I feel Malique is the best big man in the country, and we fed him down the stretch. I'm happy for both of those guys, and they continue to play well for us."
The Ponies would continue to find success on the offensive end, taking a five point, 65-60 lead with 8:43 to go on a layup from Enel St. Bernard. South Plains would respond yet again, tying the game at 67 all on a dunk from sophomore Jalen Hampton with 6:49 remaining. Tied at 71 with just over three minutes left in regulation, the Texans would utilize a 6-0 run to take a 77-71 lead on a layup from Hill with 59 ticks left. The Ponies would get within a single bucket after Christian Henry buried a triple from the top of the key with 17 seconds, but a posturizing dunk from Hill on the opposite end with 12 seconds left would be enough to send South Plains to the round of eight.
"Coach Sowers warned us this was going to be a tough game, and hats off to Panola, they played great tonight," McGhee said. "They are a well-coached team, but I'm really proud of our guys. We were down double digits in the first half and kept fighting all the way until the end. We kept chipping away in the second half, and big time players make big time plays. We're not the team to get rattled when we get down, and coach Sowers always reminds us to not get too high or too low, and that helps us in games like this."
Ewin finished with 21 points, nine boards, and three blocked shots over 33 minutes, while Hill totaled 19 points, four rebounds, and four steals. Jalen Forrest chipped in nine points as the Texans shot a 46.7 percent clip from the floor and were six of 10 from distance.