LAKE CHARLES — In the biggest games, your best players need to step up. Monday, the big three for the Northwestern State women’s basketball team showed up in a very decisive way.
The trio of Mya Blake, Vernell Atamah and Sharna Ayres combined for 57 points as the No. 5 Demons (16-14) held on for a 66-63 victory over No. 6 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (15-17) at the Legacy Center in the first round of the Southland Conference Tournament.
It is the first conference tournament victory for the Northwestern women since 2015.
The win sets up a rematch with No. 4 UIW, which won two hotly-contested meetings with Northwestern this season. Tip time for the SLC tourney quarterfinal is 11 a.m. today with coverage on ESPN+.
“Talk about resilience,” NSU coach Anna Nimz said. “All I know is they fought for 40 minutes and knocked off an incredibly good Corpus team, the reigning champs of this tournament. I am incredibly pleased with them and it is a good taste to get that first game out of the way. I am just proud of them.”
With the Demons clinging to a three-point lead with less than two seconds remaining, Blake missed both free throws but hustled in between a group of Islanders rebounders to grab the ball for the game-clinching offensive rebound, one of 15 for the Demons.
Blake scored 18 points, but the offensive rebound proved to be her biggest play of the day.
That rebound epitomized the effort put forth by the Demons, as they dominated the glass, winning the rebounding battle 49-32.
The offensive rebound put an end to a furious rally by AMCC, one in which the No. 8 seed made four consecutive 3-pointers in the final minute to cut a 10-point deficit to three.
The game was kept a bit ajar late, as Northwestern split on three consecutive trips to the free throw line.
Propelling NSU’s attack all day was Sharna Ayres, who buried six 3-pointers amidst a game-high 21 points. Her deep balls put her at 201 made triples throughout her career, the fourth Demons’ women’s player to reach 200 made 3-pointers.
In addition to her six, Northwestern made nine 3-pointers as a team, giving the Demons 209 made triples on the season, just three shy of tying the school record for made 3-pointers in a season.
Ayres buried four 3-pointers in the second half to give the Demons some much-needed breathing space, all of which came in crucial moments.
“Not only Sharna’s shot making, but her leadership, was important,” Nimz said. “She’s used to taking tough shots and she hit some very big shots and it is pretty impressive since she hasn’t practiced in the last 48 hours coming off a pretty tough ankle sprain and it is a testament to how bad she wanted it for the team and the program. I am very proud of her — not just offensively, but defensively as well.”
Early in the second half, AMCC scored four straight points to tie the score at 28 and Northwestern’s best perimeter guard Nia Hardison suffered a leg injury and had to be helped off the floor.
The team played for Hardison, the Natchitoches senior who did not return to play. Ayres buried her first triple of the second half on the following offensive trip and Northwestern never relinquished the lead the rest of the way.
“You saw it on their faces,” Nimz said. “I think it went from winning it personally to winning it for Nia. She guards the No. 1 on every team and is a big heartbeat in our program. Obviously, we hate to lose her, but even on the bench on crutches, she made us tougher. The girls fought for her and fought to the very final stretch.”
SLC Freshman of the Year Vernell Atamah made sure the Demons started fast, scoring eight of her 18 in the first seven minutes, nearly outscoring the Islanders by herself in the opening frame.