Midland College Chaps Upend McLennan Community College in a Hotly Contested Region 5 Tournament Opener
The Midland College Chaparrals were successful in their opening round game in the 2026 NJCAA Region 5 Basketball Tournament in Odessa, TX.
Midland College Basketball
NJCAA Region 5 Basketball Tournament
March 12, 2026
Odessa, TX
The Midland College basketball team improved to 26-5 overall and more importantly 1-0 in the opening round of the 2026 Region 5 Basketball Tournament with a 74-71 victory against a very talented McLennan Community College Highlanders team. The Highlanders took the court with an impressive 29-1 record having rolled through the NTJCAC without a loss. MCC earned the top seed from the Northern Conference. Midland College was the No. 4 seed from the WJCAC.
The Chaparrals were led by the outstanding play of sophomore guard Darius Carr who scored 23 points in the contest. Duane Thompson, Solomon Ominu and Yeison Liberato chipped in with 12, nine and nine points respectively. Thompson pulled down 10 rebounds to lead all players in that stat.
Midland College advances to take on South Plains College on Friday, March 13th @ 5:00 p.m. SPC defeated Temple College, 93-80 in the 3:00 p.m. contest. Friday's MC-SPC matchup will be the third meeting of the season for the teams. Each won on their home court during WJCAC play. Midland won 105-84 on January 8th. South Plains won by a score of 74-70 on February 9th.
All four Western Junior College Athletic Conference teams won their opening round games which means the Region 5 semifinals are an all WJCAC affair.
Thursday, March 12, 2026 (opening round game results):
@ 1:00 p.m. Midland College (W4) 74, McLennan Community College (N1) 71
@ 3:00 p.m. South Plains College (W2) 93, Temple College (N3) 80
@ 5:00 p.m. New Mexico Junior College (W3) 73, Collin Community College (N2) 67
@ 7:00 p.m. Howard College (W1) 83, Ranger College (N4) 69
Friday, March 13, 2026 (semifinal round games):
@ 5:00 p.m. Midland College (26-5, 1-0) vs South Plains College (24-6, 1-0)
@ 7:00 p.m. New Mexico Junior College (26-5, 1-0) vs Howard College (27-4, 1-0)
Watch the Chaparrals live at: https://tsbnsports.com/midland-vs-south-plains/
Go Chaps!