Box Score NATCHITOCHES – A 30-point outing by Alex Hamilton and 16 points, 13 rebounds and five blocks from Michale Kyser helped Louisiana Tech hold off Northwestern State 99-88 Tuesday night at Prather Coliseum despite 28 points from Jalan West and 27 by the nation's No. 5 scorer, Zeek Woodley.
 
The Bulldogs never trailed in the final 34 minutes, holding off the Demons' repeated efforts to overcome the deficit, NSU got within 79-76 on a West 3-pointer with 7:01 to go and had the ball three times, but suffered turnovers on each possession before Louisiana Tech got two Hamilton free throws with 5:19 to go to make it a two possession lead, 81-76.
 
"We had empty possessions when we were right there, three in a row, and no disrespect to Louisiana Tech, they were our mistakes. Each time our guy was trying so hard to make a play, and it backfired. We got the defensive stops we needed but just didn't convert," said Demons coach Mike McConathy.
 
NSU (3-4) could get no closer than five points the rest of the way as Louisiana Tech (6-1) won for the first time at Prather Coliseum in exactly 29 years.
 
West drained 10 of 17 shots, including 3 of 9 on 3-pointers, and sank 5 of 6 free throws while playing all but a few seconds. Coming into the night ranked second nationally in assists (8.8 average) and steals (3.7), the junior point guard had eight assists and one steal.
 
Woodley bettered his 22.5 scoring average that is fifth in the country, making 8 of 13 shots including 2 of 5 on 3s and 9 of 10 at the free throw line. The Demons were 17 of 20 on free throws, while the Bulldogs went 25 of 33.
 
Raheem Appleby scored 18 for Louisiana Tech, while senior point guard Kenneth "Speedy" Smith dished 10 assists and made four steals.
 
The Bulldogs outscored NSU 44-28 in the paint and 21-10 on second chance points after offensive rebounds. Surprisingly, the Demons outrebounded the visitors 39-34, but Louisiana Tech made only eight turnovers to 14 by NSU and had six blocks to just one by NSU, that by Marvin Frazier, who contributed 10 points and 9 rebounds before fouling out.
 
"Considering our size deficiency tonight, I'd never have thought we would beat them on the boards, but that says everything about the effort our guys gave against a really fine basketball team that played a wonderful game on the road," said McConathy. "We played pretty well and they obviously played even better."
 
The game was the only outing of the week for the Demons, who play next Tuesday night at Louisiana-Monroe. Their next homecourt appearance will be Saturday, Dec. 20 in an afternoon matchup against Louisiana-Lafayette.