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MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Junior point guard Shamir Davis nearly doubled his career high Thursday night by sinking 11 of 14 shots from the field in a 27-point performance that sparked Northwestern State to a 67-60 road win over 2011 NCAA Tournament entry Alabama State.
 
The Demons (2-1) picked up 13 points from Gary Roberson and 11 by Gary Stewart, while William Mosley contributed 8 points, 15 rebounds and 4 blocked shots.  NSU took the upper hand midway through the second half and led by as much as 12 points in the final minute. Davis, whose previous career high was 15 points last year at TCU, added 5 of 6 makes at the free throw line, along with 3 assists.
 
The Hornets (0-3), with four starters back from last year's Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament championship team, had their home opener spoiled despite 18 points by Tramaine Butler. Alabama State sank only 34 percent of its shots from the field, connecting on just 6 of 25 on 3-pointers.
 
Northwestern, which led the nation in team blocked shots per game (7.0) last year, posted 11 rejections and notched 12 steals. NSU sank 45 percent of its shots from the floor, including 25 of 46 inside the 3-point arc. The Demons again struggled at the free throw line with only 11 of 21 accuracy.
 
NSU pulled away from a 44-all tie on a basket by true freshman Marvin Frazier with 12:02 to go, followed by a 3-pointer from Roberson a half-minute later and a slashing drive through traffic by Davis at the 10:29 mark for a 51-45 advantage.  Alabama State got no closer than four points the rest of the way.
 
Stewart and Roberson scored in driving layups in a 24-second span to move NSU ahead 57-49 before Davis dumped in a basket with 5:04 to go for a 59-49 lead and the Demons held at least a six-point margin from there.
 
“Our system is what won the game, because we have the depth that allowed us to have guys who were pretty fresh playing aggressively down the stretch,” said 13^th-year NSU coach Mike McConathy. “Our system did wear them down and they had a hard time fighting through effectively in the closing minutes of the game. Shamir obviously had a great game when we needed someone to step up and score.
 
“We competed, and that was the major thing,” said McConathy. “We got some decent minutes out of Marvin Frazier and O.J. Evans. It sure seemed like Will Mosley had way more than four blocked shots. Patrick Robinson never seems to stat out well, but he gives us quality minutes with tough defense and smart basketball.”
 
The win tipped off a busy stretch of three road games in five days. NSU plays at Marshall Saturday night before visiting No. 20 Cincinnati, another 2011 NCAA Tournament team, on Monday night in a game televised by Fox Sports Ohio and available on ESPN GamePlan and ESPN3.com platforms.