NATCHITOCHES – Six postseason teams, four of which were in the NCAA or Women's National Invitational tournaments, and three television games highlight the Northwestern State women's basketball schedule for the 2014-15 season.
 
Texas A&M, which advanced to the Elite Eight, Texas and Oklahoma State, which made it to the Sweet 16, are on the docket after appearances in the NCAA Tournament along with league postseason participants Lamar (WNIT) and McNeese State and Stephen F. Austin (Women's Basketball Invitational).
 
Matchups against the Aggies and at Arkansas will be featured digitally on the SEC Network +, which can be seen on ESPN 3 as well as a return trip to Austin to face Texas on the Longhorn Network. More TV games are likely to be added when the Southland Conference releases its broadcast schedule.
 
"I believe last year's team developed a toughness throughout the season, and a big part of that toughness came from the experiences we had at those 'Big 5' venues," said co-head coach Brooke Stoehr.
 
NSU earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament after winning the league tourney in 2014, and traveled to Tennessee to take on the Lady Vols at Thompson-Boling Arena.  NSU tied the game in the first two minutes after halftime, but Tennessee pounded the ball inside and went on a 12-0 run to gain control.
 
"We want to compete at a high level year in and year out, and in order to do that I believe in playing a schedule that helps prepare our team for anything we might face in conference play and in the postseason," said Stoehr.
 
The 2014-15 campaign opens on Nov. 14 with a matchup against LeTourneau in Prather Coliseum, where NSU was 12-2 a year ago. Four days later, the Lady Demons will welcome Louisiana Tech, who finished 12-20 in 201 to Natchitoches for the first time in 31 years.
 
"I get excited anytime we play at home.  I think Prather Coliseum provides a great home court advantage for our teams," said Stoehr. "I believe anytime we get in-state teams outside of our league to come play in Prather it could be a great chance to draw nice crowd."
 
After the matchup at Arkansas on Nov. 23, Northwestern State returns home for a two-game stand against LSU-Alexandria (Nov. 25) and Central Baptist (Dec. 1) before opening a three game road trip at Texas A&M for Elementary Day at 11:00 the morning of Dec. 3.
 
NSU and UA squared off at Bud Walton Arena last year, and Arkansas took the contest 74-53. Texas A&M and Northwestern State will face each other for the first time since the 2004-05 season when the Aggies won 70-61.  TAMU leads the all-times series 4-2.
 
That road swing continues with Grambling on Dec. 6 and concludes at Texas on Dec. 14.
 
GSU finished last season with an 11-20 record and 7-11 in Southwestern Athletic Conference play.  The Longhorns finished with a 22-12 overall record and 11-7 Big 12 record. UT downed NSU 90-60 last season, but NSU kept it tight into the second half.
 
Northwestern State concludes non-conference play with Arkansas-Monticello (Dec. 17), at Jackson State (Dec. 20) and at Oklahoma State (Dec. 29).   NSU beat UAM 63-40 and JSU 71-52, and will face OSU for the first time since 2006.  NSU played JSU, UAM and OSU in four-game span that season.
 
"This year will probably be the toughest non-conference schedule we've had in the three years Scott and I have been here.  It will be a great challenge, but one our team will welcome," said Stoehr.
 
NSU opens its Southland Conference schedule at Houston Baptist on Jan. 2 and Sam Houston Sate on Jan. 5.  Due to an odd number of members in the league this season, Southland Conference play is not limited to Thursday and Saturday games like in years past.
 
"It's a situation where the uneven number of teams in the league makes for an interesting schedule," said Stoehr. "Our team will approach each game the same way regardless of the day of the week."
 
Northwestern State returns home for Abilene Christian on Jan. 7 and Incarnate Word three days later before it travels Texas A&M-Corpus Christi for a Jan. 14 matchup. Then, Lamar (Jan. 17), Nicholls (Jan. 21) and McNeese State (Jan. 24) pay visits to Prather Coliseum for a three-game homestand.
 
The contest with Nicholls opens a 12-game set in which NSU faces just six teams, made of in-state league rivals, Central Arkansas and Stephen F. Austin.
 
"I like the idea of playing our regional or in-state teams twice. I think it is great for both schools because fans are capable of making the drive to cheer on their respective team," said Stoher.  "I believe it makes for a better game day environment when you have teams with some natural rivalries competing against one another."
 
Once NSU's three-game stand is over, it travels to UCA on Jan. 28 and then heads to Southeastern Louisiana on Jan. 31. UCA makes a return trip to Prather Coliseum on Feb. 12 after Stephen F. Austin visits on Feb. 5.
 
Northwestern State turns down the homestretch with four road games in six contests.  It will travel to McNeese State (Feb. 14), Nicholls (Feb. 18), New Orleans (Feb. 21), and SFA (March 5), and the home games in that stretch are SLU (Feb. 26) and New Orleans in the season finale on March 7.
 
The Southland Conference Tournament will be held at the Leonard E. Merrell Center in Katy, Texas, from March 11-15.  The championship game is slated for noon on the CBS Sports Network.
 
For tickets or information, call the NSU ticket office at 318-357-4268.