The site where Mike McConathy recorded nearly half of his Louisiana-record 682 college basketball coaching victories officially will bear his name beginning Feb. 15.

 

At halftime of Northwestern State’s Southland Conference men’s basketball game against Stephen F. Austin, the playing surface at Prather Coliseum will become Mike McConathy Court in honor of the state’s leader in college basketball coaching victories.

 

The court dedication will highlight an afternoon doubleheader with Stephen F. Austin, which includes a tribute lunch for McConathy between games. The men’s game is slated to start at 3:30.

 

The Feb. 15 ceremony also will mark the launch of the Mike McConathy Scholarship Fund, which will support Northwestern student-athletes who have exhausted their NCAA eligibility before completing their degrees.

 

Former Demon basketball players and support staff, and the public, are being asked to share their photos of coach McConathy to be displayed throughout the day by sending them to cole@nsula.edu.

 

McConathy compiled 330 of his state-record victories while coaching at Northwestern, the alma mater of his father, two uncles, both of his sons and two of his nephews.

 

During his 23-season run as the Demons’ head coach, McConathy led Northwestern to its only three NCAA Tournament appearances, including the only two NCAA Tournament victories in school history.

 

The 2005-06 “Demons of Destiny” squad lives on in NCAA Tournament lore. Jermaine Wallace’s last-gasp 3-pointer completed a 17-point rally and lifted Northwestern to a stunning upset of No. 3-seeded Iowa – a play that was voted the Pontiac Game Changing Performance of 2006 March Madness, a distinction that landed Northwestern a $100,000 general fund scholarship.

 

McConathy’s teams were a constant presence at the top of the Southland Conference standings, winning the only two Southland titles in program history, reaching seven SLC Tournament title games and winning three of them.

 

Additionally, McConathy’s teams were standouts in the classroom, landing numerous National Association of Basketball Coaches Team Academic Excellence Awards and holding a graduation rate of around 90 percent.

 

McConathy’s career, which also included from 1983-99 starting and building Bossier Parish Community College’s program into a national tournament participant, landed him the Louisiana Association of Basketball Coaches Association’s Mr. Basketball Award in 2023.

 

He is a member of the N-Club Hall of Fame, the Ark-La-Tex Museum of Champions, the Louisiana Tech Athletic Hall of Fame, the Airline High School Hall of Fame, and Northwestern’s Hall of Distinguished Educators. McConathy taught classes throughout his time at NSU.

The Feb. 15 ceremony also will mark the launch of the Mike McConathy Scholarship Fund, which will support Northwestern student-athletes who have exhausted their NCAA eligibility before completing their degrees.

 

Former Demon basketball players and support staff, and the public, are being asked to share their photos of coach McConathy to be displayed throughout the day by sending them to cole@nsula.edu.

 

McConathy compiled 330 of his state-record victories while coaching at Northwestern, the alma mater of his father, two uncles, both of his sons and two of his nephews.

 

During his 23-season run as the Demons’ head coach, McConathy led Northwestern to its only three NCAA Tournament appearances, including the only two NCAA Tournament victories in school history.

 

The 2005-06 “Demons of Destiny” squad lives on in NCAA Tournament lore. Jermaine Wallace’s last-gasp 3-pointer completed a 17-point rally and lifted Northwestern to a stunning upset of No. 3-seeded Iowa – a play that was voted the Pontiac Game Changing Performance of 2006 March Madness, a distinction that landed Northwestern a $100,000 general fund scholarship.

 

McConathy’s teams were a constant presence at the top of the Southland Conference standings, winning the only two Southland titles in program history, reaching seven SLC Tournament title games and winning three of them.

 

Additionally, McConathy’s teams were standouts in the classroom, landing numerous National Association of Basketball Coaches Team Academic Excellence Awards and holding a graduation rate of around 90 percent.

 

McConathy’s career, which also included from 1983-99 starting and building Bossier Parish Community College’s program into a national tournament participant, landed him the Louisiana Association of Basketball Coaches Association’s Mr. Basketball Award in 2023.

 

He is a member of the N-Club Hall of Fame, the Ark-La-Tex Museum of Champions, the Louisiana Tech Athletic Hall of Fame, the Airline High School Hall of Fame, and Northwestern’s Hall of Distinguished Educators. McConathy taught classes throughout his time at NSU.