NATCHITOCHES – For all the plays Jalan West made down the stretch Saturday, one Incarnate Word didn't let him make was the game-winner for Northwestern State.
 
On an inbounds pass with 6.7 seconds left in a tie game, UIW double-teamed West and denied him the ball. The Demons went to backup point guard Devonte Hall, a freshman, instead, and he drove end-to-end to hit a leaning 4-footer just before the final buzzer, giving the Demons a scintillating 103-101 comeback Southland Conference basketball win.
 
West, NSU's extraordinary junior point guard, poured in 33 points, including six straight pressure-packed free throws in the final 20 seconds, the last two pushing the Demons ahead 101-100 with 0:06.7 remaining.
 
But UIW's outstanding senior guard, 37-point scorer Denzel Livingston, drew a foul on the inbounds pass and had a chance to answer. He made the first free throw, creating the 18^th tie in an epic battle, but was short on the second and also stepped across the free throw line early chasing the rebound, committing a violation that gave NSU possession with 6.7 seconds left.
 
The Cardinals denied West but had no defense for Hall, who finished with eight points and his first collegiate buzzer-beating game-winner. A replay showed three-tenths of a second remained, but NSU's Matt Killian fittingly knocked away a 60-foot inbounds pass to end the game.
 
It was Killian who teamed with Hall for the game's biggest turnover.
 
After two West free throws with 12 seconds left got NSU within 100-99, they swarmed Livingston off the inbounds and Killian batted Livingston's pass off the UIW star and out of bounds in front of the NSU bench, getting the ball back to the Demons.
 
West drove to the basket, drew the foul and completed a 10-of-11 worksheet at the line with his go-ahead shots, which ultimately set the stage for Hall's heroics.
 
"Coach told us to be aggressive if they denied the ball to Jalan, and the floor was open," said Hall. "I just attacked the basket. When I took the shot, I knew it was going in."
 
The Demons (7-7 overall, 2-1 in the Southland) overcame a five-point deficit with 1:22 left and won after trailing all but the last seven seconds of the final 6:42 in a game with 17 lead changes, 14 after halftime.
 
NSU outscored UIW (8-4, 0-2) 10-3 in the last 1:22, starting with an offensive rebound and putback by 28-point scorer Zeek Woodley, the nation's No. 2 point producer with a 21.8 average entering the game. The Cardinals contributed to their demise with a pair of missed free throws and Livingston's turnover, failing to win although they made 65 percent of their second-half shots and 53 percent overall.
 
Tra'von Joseph matched his career best with 10 points for NSU, who won the rebounding battle (41-33) for only the fifth time this season as West, Marvin Frazier and Ta'Jon Welcome each snagged six.
 
West didn't register an assist until early after halftime, and finished with five, below his 7.8 average. He nailed 5-of-6 on 3-pointers, sinking 9 of 18 overall. He had a string of 16 straight free throw makes halted early in the second half, but sank his last eight and has now made 47 of his last 52.
 
Woodley added 9-of-11 at the line as NSU shot 85 percent (29-34) there, 43.5 percent (10-23) on 3s and 46 percent from the floor.
 
Livingston's 37 points bettered his career high by one and was six shy of the Cardinals' school scoring mark. He sank 12 of 21 shots, going 4-11 on 3s and 9 of 13 at the line, while adding four assists and three steals. Four other UIW players scored in double digits, including Shawn Johnson with 18 and Kyle Hittle with 16.
 
Delighting a crowd of 1,412, the Demons won on their homecourt for the 13^th time in the last 14 tries, going 25-5 in Prather Coliseum since the start of 2012-13.
 
NSU opened a season-long three-game homestand. Tuesday night, the Demons host Abilene Christian and next Saturday afternoon, Lamar visits for another Southland doubleheader. The Lady Demons went 4-0 in the Southland with a 73-51 win over UIW, giving NSU its sixth straight home doubleheader sweep dating back to last season.