For the final time this season, the Northwestern State men’s basketball team will face an unfamiliar opponent.

Monday night’s visit from Southland Conference newcomer UTRGV – a first-time Demon opponent regardless of circumstance – comes on Throwback Night at Prather Coliseum.

Fans are asked to wear vintage Northwestern apparel for the 6:30 p.m. tipoff, which will air on ESPN+. There will be trivia questions posted throughout the day on Demon athletics’ social media channels with prizes awarded to the winners.

The Demons (9-12, 6-5) and Vaqueros (13-9, 5-6) come into their first matchup off opposite results in their previous outings.

Northwestern fell to East Texas A&M on Saturday while UTRGV snapped a two-game skid with a win against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. While the games featured different outcomes for the Demons and Vaqueros, one thing remained constant – the winning team shot the ball well from 3-point range.

That was no surprise on either side.

UTRGV averages 10.5 made 3-pointers per game, a number that leads the Southland Conference and ranks 11th nationally. Nothwestern, meanwhile, has seen its opponents connect on 8.3 3-pointers per game, making them at a 36.6 percent clip overall and 37.1 percent in league play.

“This is a team that has done pretty well overall,” second-year coach Rick Cabrera said. “They’ve had some adversity, but they’re very dangerous. They shoot the 3 ball very, very well. They can beat you just by making 3s alone.”

For the Demons, a return home is a bit overdue.

Northwestern went 1-2 on its three-game Southland Conference road trip that ended Saturday at East Texas A&M. Getting back into a comfort zone could help the Demon offense, which averaged 55.3 points per game in that span.

“It’s in our comfort zone,” Cabrera said. “It’s where we practice every day.”

Guarding the 3-point line against the Vaqueros will be key for a Demon squad that will play at home for the lone time in a six-game stretch from Jan. 27-Feb. 10.

“The game has changed to where the 3-point shot is very impactful,” Cabrera said. “(UTRGV) is taking advantage of it. You can win some games because of it, and you can lose some games because of it. We hope on Monday night, they miss a lot of them, but we have to make them miss them.”