The Northwestern State women’s basketball team is off to its best start through 13 games since 2021-22, and another tough test awaits, as it welcomes UTRGV to Prather Coliseum tonight at 6:30.
NSU (7-6, 4-1) rebounded from its first Southland Conference defeat of the season with a 50-46 road victory last time out against Nicholls.
The Lady Demons are one of three teams on top of the conference with one defeat, tied with McNeese and UIW. Four teams are right behind at 3-2 in league play, a group UTRGV (6-8, 3-2) is a part of.
The game will be streamed on ESPN+ and broadcast locally on 100.7 FM KZBL.
The Demons have thrived late in close games, as they are 3-1 in clutch time games. A clutch time game is statistically described as the final five minutes of the fourth quarter or overtime when the score difference is five points or fewer.
“We’re finding a way to win even when we are not playing our best basketball,” head coach Anna Nimz said. “If you’re finding a way to win when you have 20 turnovers, when we take care of the ball and find better decision making, we’re going to be a very tough team to play against.
“We made big plays when they were needed. We held them scoreless for the final 3:47, so we showed tremendous toughness in the face of adversity.”
The defense posted its third game of surrendering fewer than 50 points in a game this season.
While the Demons’ defense has been strong, Nimz says there is room for improvement.
“One of our areas of growth needs to be in 1-on-1 guarding,” Nimz said. “I think we’ve done a really nice job in the course of these games, but that is always an area we can grow and develop to be in that back side rotation and having incredible team defense.”
UTRGV has won its last two clutch time games itself, both in league play, including a key win at Stephen F. Austin on Dec. 15.
Two key factors in the game will be rebounding and 3-point shooting.
Both teams are in the top three in the league in both made triples and 3-pointers attempted, as NSU has gone 100-for-288, while UTRGV has made 92 triples in 310 attempts. The Demons do lead the league in 3-point percentage at 34.7 percent and have shot 35.6 percent during SLC play.
In league play, NSU has two of the top three 3-point makers in the conference, led by Nya Valentine’s 14. Despite not making a triple in the win at Nicholls, Valentine takes the top spot, while Atamah is tied for second with 13, four of which came in the victory over the Colonels. She leads the SLC in 3-point percentage, shooting 52 percent.
The game features the top two teams in the Southland Conference in rebounding margin in league games.
In its five games, the Demons are plus-9.0, while the Vaqueros are plus-6.2.
The Lady Demons wrap up the home weekend with a visit from Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Saturday before heading on the road for three in a row.
“If you haven’t come out to Prather to see us yet, this is a fun group to watch play,” Nimz said. “They have no give-up and are resilient in how they play and that is a fun game to watch. We’re as good as our community support and the more love and the more energy you provide and the more love these girls feel, the hard they’re going to work and the more they’re going to fight.”