By Jason Pugh, Northwestern State Associate Athletic Director for External Relations; featured photo by Chris Reich, NSU Photographic Services
NATCHITOCHES – It took a while, but Saturday’s Southland Conference men’s basketball matchup between East Texas A&M and Northwestern State eventually played to form.
The Demons weathered several second-half pushes from the hard-charging Lions to score a 75-67 victory inside Prather Coliseum that extended Northwestern’s best conference start in 12 seasons.
“It wasn’t the prettiest of games, but there really are no pretty games,” second-year head coach Rick Cabrera said. “Every game in conference is going to be a grind. (East Texas A&M) is very scrappy, tough. I didn’t like our turnovers for the game. That’s unacceptable, but for the most part, we answered every run they threw at us.”
No answer was bigger than after the Lions (2-14, 0-5) had sliced an 18-point Demon lead to six with 6:17 to play, leading Cabrera to call a 30-second timeout.
Landyn Jumawan and Micah Thomas buried consecutive 3-pointers out of the timeout to re-establish a 12-point lead, which allowed the Demons (7-8, 4-1) to capture their second win of the three-game homestand.
Thomas’ 3 was one of five he hit on the day, part of a career-high 25 points for the junior guard.
“It’s always good to see the first one go through, but it really starts with the preparation – just getting in the gym and staying confident in who you are,” said Thomas, who shot 5 for 8 from beyond the arc.
Thomas’ hot shooting was emblematic of the way the Demons started Saturday’s game.
Northwestern built a 14-point halftime advantage on the strength of a 5-for-10 start from 3-point range with Thomas and Jon Sanders II each knocking down a pair.
The Demons, however, played the role of generous hosts in the second half.
After building an 18-point lead on Thomas’ step-back 3-pointer with 17:39 to play, the Demons saw the Lions put together a 9-1 run to cut the Northwestern lead to 10.
A Demarco Bethea layup with 9:49 to play moved the lead to single digits for the first time in the second half and came following a Demon turnover. That scenario played out plenty in the second half as the Lions turned 11 second-half Demon turnovers into 14 points.
Meanwhile, Northwestern did not score a point off a Lion turnover in the second half after tallying 11 such points in the first half.
“Sports is so psychological, especially from coaching the players,” Cabrera said. “You have a good half defensively, and you’re proud of your team, but the game of basketball is not finished in halves. We have to play two halves. The psychological part is to say, ‘Do what you did in the first half in the second half.’ That’s easier said than done, but it’s a mind game with your players. You have to continue to rep it.”
Despite the turnovers, the Demons were able to steady themselves because of their balance up and down the roster and gave them their third single-digit victory in their past four wins against the Lions. Since East Texas A&M entered the Southland Conference in the 2022-23 season, six of the seven matchups between the teams have been decided by eight points or less.
Thomas led the way with his 25 points while Willie Williams (10 points, 10 rebounds) collected his third double-double of the season. Williams’ tough finish through contact with 32 seconds remaining not only gave the Demons a three-possession lead but completed his double-double.
“Getting on the boards really does get me going,” Williams said. “It makes it easier for us to score.”
Sanders (12 points) and Addison Patterson (11 points, 7 assists) added double-figure scoring days for Northwestern while Scooter Williams Jr. led East Texas A&M with 18 while Bethea and Chris Adlam each added 10 points off the bench.
The Demons complete their split weekend by facing Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on the road Monday night. Tipoff is set for 7 at the American Bank Center.
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