CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The Northwestern State women's basketball team hasn't picked up a win this season away from Prather Coliseum.
 
The Lady Demons, however, have made progress in road games, giving them a lift as they start a two-game Southland Conference road swing at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Wednesday night. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. at the Dugan Wellness Center.
 
The game can be heard on 100.7 FM KZBL in Natchitoches and on the Demon Sports Network. Streaming audio is available on www.NSUDemons.com or through the new Northwestern State Athletics mobile app, which can be downloaded free through Google Play or the Apple Store. Tony Taglavore, in his 11^th season, will have the play-by-play call of the game.
 
Northwestern State (6-7, 1-1) fell by 11 in its most recent road game at Nicholls on Jan. 2. The Lady Demons shot 50.8 percent against the Colonels and have hit 49.6 percent of their shots from the field in the past two road games, which includes a 48.3-percent performance at then-No. 13 Texas on Dec. 29.
 
"It's a mentality," third-year head coach Jordan Dupuy said of the key to winning road games. "You have to expect to play well. We told them, victory Wednesday begins in the film session Monday. We have to carry over what we've done well on the road and continue to grow in areas where we don't. Right now, that is rebounding. We have to make sure we do that. (The Islanders) are a very athletic group, one that crashes the boards extremely well."
 
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (6-7, 1-1) split a pair of road games at Central Arkansas and Lamar during the first week of conference play.
 
The Islanders feature a defense that ranks second in the Southland in scoring (58.0 ppg). New Mexico Junior College transfer Alexes Bryant has anchored that effort, leading the conference in total blocks (21). Thanks in part to the 6-foot-3 Bryant, the Islanders limit opponents to 36.4 percent shooting, second in the league.
 
The Lady Demons offense ranks second in the Southland in scoring in conference games, averaging 84 points per game. Across all games, Northwestern State has shot 42.2 percent, good for third in the league.
 
"We have to attack (Bryant) and hopefully get her in foul trouble," Dupuy said. "She has unbelievable length and timing, but we can't just negate the play inside because she is a good shot blocker. (She can affect the game), but at the same time, we don't want to settle for 3-pointers. We'll see a lot of zone, but we have to execute."
 
The Lady Demons have executed better offensively on the road this season, averaging 64.7 points per game in six road matchups. A season ago, Northwestern State scored 51.7 points per game in 14 road contests.
 
Overall, Northwestern State has seen its points per game average climb nearly 16 points per game from the 2017-18 season.
 
While Dupuy said he does not want the Lady Demons settling for 3-point shots, he would not mind seeing Nautica Grant reprise her performance from Saturday. Grant, a senior guard from Dallas, Texas, delivered a career-high 34 points in NSU's 82-63 win against McNeese.
 
Grant shot 8-for-13 from the field, including 6-for-9 from 3-point range and added a 12-for-13 performance from the free-throw line.
 
"She did a great job of letting the game come to her," Dupuy said. "Her teammates did a great job of finding her and realizing what defense they were in early. They found her, she made shots. When (McNeese) attacked her and ran her off the 3-point line in the second half, she got into the paint and made things happen."
 
Grant's performance was just one of several positive steps taken in the past month by a Northwestern State team that seems poised to break through for its first road win of the season.
 
"We have to take the positives but realize we have so much room to grow," Dupuy said. "We have to embrace it because this team can be so much better."