Box Score NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State basketball team's strong start paled in comparison to a dominant finish Saturday in a 93-67 Southland Conference basketball win over visiting McNeese State.
The Demons (9-9 overall, 4-3 in the Southland) will go into Monday night's 6:30 contest in Prather Coliseum against Nicholls on a roll after closing out the Cowboys (7-10, 1-5).

 
NSU turned a competitive game into a rout down the stretch by scoring 15 unanswered points in just under five minutes, taking a 14-point advantage to a commanding 93-64 lead with 1:24 to go, notching their biggest win over their friendly neighborhood rivals since a 103-73 romp that clinched the 2005 Southland regular-season title.
 
Fueling the energy for the Prather Coliseum crowd of 2,712 was a sterling performance by junior point guard Jalan West: 25 points on 9 of 15 overall shooting, including 6 of 9 on 3-pointers; a near triple-double with 8 rebounds and 8 assists; no turnovers, two steals and even a blocked shot in his 31 minutes of play. He helped his No. 4-ranked assists' average (7.4) with his 10^th outing over eight dimes this year, and the 27^th of his career.
 
He left the game with 4:08 remaining. So did sophomore guard Zeek Woodley, the nation's No. 3 scorer, just past his 22.4 average with a 23-point outing on 10 of 15 aim, including 1 of 3 behind the arc. The 6-2 Woodley matched a career high with three blocks and had two steals.
 
Senior center Marvin Frazier shook off back problems to regain his early-season form with 10 points, five rebounds and four blocked shots. Posting his first career double-digit scoring total was junior Matt Killian, notching 10 points in his first start of the season and eighth of his career.
 
The Demons shot 57 percent, 64 percent after taking a 49-35 halftime lead. They sank 10 of 23 (43.5 percent) on 3-pointers and outrebounded the Cowboys by 37-30.
 
NSU outscored McNeese 20-1 in points off turnovers, coming up with 12 steals as Killian led with three and West, Woodley, Tra'von Joseph and Devonte Hall each snatched a pair. The Demons swatted nine shots as McNeese managed only 40 percent overall, and just 13 of 38 inside 3-point range. Behind the arc, the Cowboys drained half of their 22 tries.
 
Kevin Hardy's 14 points topped McNeese, with 11 from Jamaya Burr and 10 apiece by Desharick Guidry and Keelan Garrett. Guidry, the nation's No. 3 rebounder with an 11.8 average, narrowly missed his 12th double-double of the season by snagging nine missed shots.
 
The Cowboys scored the game's first five points, but a burst of nine unanswered by NSU put the home team up 14-7. The Demons led by double figures much of the opening half, and scored the last seven to go in up by 14.
 
McNeese got no closer than 10 afterwards, but stayed within range until the final surge by NSU.
 
It was the Demons' fourth straight victory in the series and NSU's 23^rd consecutive Saturday afternoon matinee triumph.