NATCHITOCHES – Take your pick of what makes Thursday night's women's basketball matchup between Northwestern State and Stephen F. Austin significant.
The game is the first meeting between the longtime rivals since last March when the Lady Demons downed SFA, 62-44, in the Southland Conference Tournament championship game.
It has been selected as the "Pack Prather" game, and it marks NSU President Dr. Jim Henderson's debut as the radio color analyst.
For third-year co-head coach
Brooke Stoehr, her squad's 6:30 p.m. tipoff against its Southland Conference rival is important for one reason.
"We've got eight games remaining in conference play, and this game is extremely important because it's the next game," Stoehr said. "Anytime we play SFA, it's going to be fun and exciting. We've had some great games over the last two years. I expect (SFA coach) Brandon (Schneider) to have his group ready. They're playing great basketball right now."
The Lady Demons (12-9, 7-3) and Lady Jacks (13-6, 6-2) are in a virtual tie for second place in the Southland Conference, one game behind league-leading Lamar.
Northwestern State returns home after dropping road games at Central Arkansas and Southeastern Louisiana last week.
How her players responded to those losses left an impression on Stoehr.
"The biggest thing is these players don't like to lose, especially these returners," Stoehr said. "They've experienced winning. They know what it means. They know what it takes to make a strong run."
While point guard
Janelle Perez has been central to the Lady Demons' strong start to conference play, SFA's 6-foot-2 Porsha Roberts has been the linchpin for the Lady Jacks' 6-2 conference start.
Roberts, a preseason first-team All-Southland Conference selection, averages close to a double-double (17 points, 9.5 rebounds per game) and leads the conference in field-goal shooting (61.9 percent).
"She's as polished and aggressive an offensive and defensive post player as there is in our league," Stoehr said. "We're going to have to try to limit her touches and force her to make some difficult shots. She does a tremendous job of getting to the free-throw line.
"Defensively, she blocks shots and alters shots. We've got to do a great job of attacking her, forcing her to defend and, hopefully, get a couple of fouls on her."
Even with Roberts, there are subtle differences between the 2013-14 Lady Jacks and this year's edition, and the same can be said for the Lady Demons.
There is also a mutual admiration between the opposing coaching staffs that has grown through the nip-and-tuck nature of the series. In the five meetings between the teams in the Brooke and
Scott Stoehr era, the Lady Demons have outscored the Lady Jacks by one point.
"They spent a lot of time in the offseason looking at what we do offensively, looking at what we do defensively,"
Brooke Stoehr said. "We've done the same. They'll be extremely well prepared. We know what to expect from them."
The game will be broadcast on the Demon Sports Network, flagshipped by 100.7 KZBL in Natchitoches and including Sports Talk 100.7 FM and SuperTalk 1340 AM KRMD in Shreveport, and KWLA 103.1 FM in Anacoco. Free audio is available at NSUDemons.com and SuperTalk1340.com. Tony Taglavore will deliver the play-by-play.
Henderson, who assumed the NSU presidency Jan. 1, will deliver analysis alongside Taglavore and brings deep basketball ties to the broadcast. Henderson's father, Clem, was a state champion basketball coach at Fair Park High School in Shreveport.
The "Pack Prather" promotion means there will be free food and drinks, as well as prizes available for both general fans and for NSU students. Students who attend both Thursday's game and the Monday men's game against SFA will be eligible to win $500 cash.
The matchup with SFA is the lone game of the week for the Lady Demons, who will return to action next Thursday when they host Central Arkansas in the teams' second meeting this season. Tipoff for that game is set for 6:30 p.m.
