NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State basketball team was at its best on the road in the first half of the Southland Conference basketball race, so the Demons are using an unconventional approach going into Wednesday night's home game against third-place New Orleans.

Riding the positivity of a monster first-half outing in an 80-75 victory Saturday at Central Arkansas, NSU (8-14 overall, 3-6 in the Southland) enters a quick rematch against UNO (11-8, 7-3, riding a three-game win streak). The Privateers scored eight of the last 10 points in the closing 46 seconds last Wednesday to push away from a 64-62 lead and defeat the Demons 72-64 in a contest with 17 lead changes.

Northwestern went 2-2 on the road in the first half of the conference season, with three of those games settled in the last minute.

"Our best performances have been on the road, which is unusual, and we were as good as we've been in a long, long time at UCA in the first half and at the end of the game last Saturday," said 20^th-year head coach Mike McConathy. "We're not getting on a bus before this game, we're not staying in a hotel, but in most other ways, the routine we're following is how we operate on the road."

Scoring over half a hundred in the opening 20 minutes at UCA was NSU's high this season in a half, but not as exceptional as elements that produced a 51-27 lead. The Demons drained 68 percent (19-28) of their shots, including 6-11 on 3-pointers, with the halftime advantage bigger than any in league play for Northwestern in several years.

"We had a really good flow to the game," said assistant coach Jeff Moore. "We got to the point where we weren't calling any plays because we were just playing basketball at a high level."

UCA rallied and tied the game at 68, but the Demons sank nine of their last 10 free throws and made some key defensive plays to prevail. Getting 22 points (on 9 for 9 shooting aim) and 13 rebounds by senior Ishmael Lane, his fifth consecutive double-double performance, was key. His two free throws with 6.4 seconds left locked up the win.

Lane had 17 points and 15 rebounds last Wednesday against UNO.

"Both teams know each other very well, because we just played a week ago," said Moore. "It should be a very competitive game again."

"This is a tough matchup because of their physicality," said McConathy, "but we were right there with them throughout 40 minutes a week ago and that's encouraging.

"We're a better team than we've been for quite a while. We're getting better as we move forward. We're more seasoned. We're showing toughness. We're getting a little more confidence in our game," he said.

The NSU-UNO contest can be heard on 100.7 FM KZBL in Natchitoches and through the Demon Sports Network with Patrick Netherton calling the action. Steaming video and audio are available at www.NSUDemons.com/watch or through the new Northwestern State Athletics mobile app, which can be downloaded through either the Apple Store or Google Play.

Wednesday evening's rematch is the only homecourt appearance in a five-game stretch for the Demons, who visit McNeese Saturday afternoon at 3 and go to Lamar next Wednesday. NSU then gets two of the next three at home, starting Feb. 16 when the Demons aim for a season sweep of Stephen F. Austin.