NATCHITOCHES – After spending the past two weeks on the road, the Northwestern State women's basketball team has a renewed sense of appreciation for playing at home.
 
The Lady Demons opened Southland Conference play by playing three of its first four league games on the road, a scenario that flips beginning with Saturday's 1 p.m. matchup against Abilene Christian.
 
The game can be heard on 100.7 FM KZBL or through the new Northwestern State Athletics mobile app, which is available for free download through either the Apple Store or Google Play. Streaming audio and video are available on www.NSUDemons.com. Tony Taglavore, in his 11^th season, will handle the play-by-play call of the game.
 
"It's about the level of comfort," third-year head coach Jordan Dupuy said. "We definitely play more confident (at home). There are times we don't play our best game, but we're able to come out on top. Some of it is sleeping in your own bed, shooting at your own baskets. We need a good crowd. It's a big game, hopefully one that will start turning it around for us."
 
Northwestern State (6-9, 1-3) has not played since an 84-56 loss at Stephen F. Austin on Jan. 12.
 
It is an occurrence that happens twice during the 10 weeks of Southland Conference competition, and it allowed the Lady Demons a chance to shake up their routine.
 
"We concentrated on us during the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday practices," Dupuy said. "We sharpened some things up, added some new things. We concentrated on making those strides in the areas we need to win conference games."
 
While Northwestern State did turn its early-week focus on itself, the Lady Demons did not forget about the Wildcats (11-5, 4-1), which sits one game behind conference-leading Lamar.
 
Abilene Christian has remained near the top of the conference thanks in large part to an offense that leads the league in scoring in conference games (80.4 ppg) and ranks second offensively in all games, averaging 76.1 points per game.
 
The Wildcats pair that offense with a defense that ranks fourth in conference games, allowing an average of 63.8 points per game. ACU also leads the conference in rebound margin, grabbing 8.5 more rebounds per game more than its opposition.
 
While the Lady Demons fell to Stephen F. Austin in their most recent outing, they made strides on the boards, outrebounding the Ladyjacks by four. It marked the first time since Nov. 12 Northwestern State outrebounded its opponent.
 
"They're very versatile on offense," Dupuy said of the Wildcats. "They can spread you out. They all can shoot the 3. They've got crafty, high-IQ players who do a great job of taking advantage of what the defense gives them."
 
The teams have not met in Prather Coliseum since Feb. 18, 2017. That game – a 75-74 ACU victory that featured two lead changes in the final 1.9 seconds – typified the Natchitoches portion of the series between the teams.
 
"We haven't played well when we've gone out there," Dupuy said. "Every time we've played here, it's been a dogfight, and I expect it to be again Saturday."