NATCHITOCHES – It wasn't tough to pick Monday night's 6:30 matchup between Southland Conference basketball stalwarts Northwestern State and Stephen F. Austin as "Pack Prather Night" at NSU.

The NSU-SFA rivalry always keeps ticket-takers busy. With free food, prizes and festivities adding to the allure of the latest battle between the Southland heavyweights, there's a good chance to reach or surpass the 3,400 capacity listed for NSU's venerable Prather Coliseum.

Watching the Demons play is typically entertaining. NSU (12-9 overall, 7-3 in the Southland) is No. 2 nationally in scoring (84.7 points per game) for the third straight season led by a pair of the country's more dynamic players, sophomore swingman Zeek Woodley (third in NCAA scoring with a 22.4 average) and junior point guard Jalan West, who is fifth in assists per game (7.3), along with top 40 national rankings in scoring  (40^th, 18.3 ppg) and steals (20^th, 2.1 pg).

But after an unbeaten Southland slate last year, an NCAA Tournament win last march and continued perfection this year, the Lumberjacks (19-3, 9-0) are the league's hottest story.

SFA leads the country with 31 straight conference regular-season conference wins. The Demons are the last Southland foe to beat the Lumberjacks, topping them 68-66 in the 2013 Southland Tournament championship game.

Under second-year head coach Brad Underwood, SFA is unbeaten in league games and owns a 51-6 record overall after thrashing Houston Baptist 85-59 Saturday at home.

"Coach Underwood and the Lumberjacks are having a remarkable season again this year. He does a wonderful job and they have a great team," said 16^th-year Demons coach Mike McConathy. "Thomas Walkup may be one of the toughest players in America. He is just a battler and does a fabulous job. Jacob Parker is a tremendous player, and Trey Pinkney runs the show. They're just special.

"We feel like we're pretty special too, and we'll be prepared to play and give it our best shot in front of our home crowd. Our resume' isn't as shiny or near spotless like theirs, but I do feel we are making progress and improving each and every day. Have we improved enough to take down the Lumberjacks? We'll get to see."

Walkup and Parker, last year's Southland Player of the Year, each score 14.1 per game and average nearly six rebounds. Four other Lumberjacks average between 6.5 and 8.2 points while Pinkney, the point guard, averages 4.1 assists for a team outscoring opponents by a 15.2 margin that has risen to 20.9 in nine league wins.

The Demons and 'Jacks staged two down-to-the-wire battles last year in three meetings after a trio of last-second outcomes, two won by NSU, a season earlier in the spirited rivalry.

"It's what sports is supposed to be about," said McConathy. "This is a big-time local rivalry, with a deep mutual respect for the other institution, for the other team, their players and coaches, and at the end we'll shake hands and look forward to the next time we square off."

Monday's contest will be the 1,000^th in McConathy's 32-year college coaching career, on the heels of a 110-108 triumph last Tuesday at Central Arkansas.

 "It's hard to believe I've coached that many games, but it's due to the people who have surrounded me, helped and supported me, and most of all, played for me," he said. "I've never seen one quite like No. 999, but oddly enough, our defense truly helped us win a game in which we allowed 108 points, because our pressure created the opportunity for us to come back and get on top in the second half."

The game will be one of only two homecourt appearances for the Demons this month, along with a Feb. 16 rematch with UCA. NSU goes to McNeese on Saturday.

The NSU-SFA contest will be broadcast on the Demon Sports Network, flagshipped by 100.7 KZBL in Natchitoches and including and SuperTalk 1340 AM KRMD in Shreveport, and KWLA 103.1 FM in Anacoco. Free audio is available at NSUDemons.com and SuperTalk1340.com. Pay-per-view or subscription video is available at NSUDemons.com.