NATCHITOCHES –Northwestern State has seen plenty of growth and resiliency in the past month on the road. It has also produced plenty of excitement that will finally get to be put on display at home in front of the home fans in a return to Prather Coliseum on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Lady Demons (6-3) play, in the first meeting between the two, Tarleton State (6-3) beginning at 1 p.m. as part of a delayed doubleheader with the NSU men who play at 6 p.m.
Fans can purchase tickets for just $1 which is good for both the women's and men's games.
 
Live video of the game will be available at www.nsudemons.com/watch or on the NSU Athletics mobile app, a free download via the Apple or Google Stores. Live streaming audio will also be available through the website and app along with being heard locally on 95.9 FM Kix Country.
 
Coming off of two straight thrilling road wins in the past week, the Lady Demons have created some buzz and continue to show just what they are capable of accomplishing. Clutch shooting down the stretch at Arkansas State, an overtime win at Mississippi Valley and a last-second shot at ULM have given the Lady Demons three straight non-conference road wins for the first time since 1988.
 
With the recent run of success, despite some things that head coach Anna Nimz still wants to clean up as the team inches closer to conference play, the anticipation of playing inside Prather Coliseum once again is immense.
 
"We are continuing to build on our strengths while addressing and attacking our weaknesses," head coach Anna Nimz said. "The girls have done an incredible job on the road, but now it's time to protect the house. We are excited to be back in Prather and playing in front of our faithful Demon fans."
 
"It's going to be pretty exciting," Candice Parramore said. "Everybody loves playing on their home court because that's where you practice, and you have a feel for it. I'm ready. It should be fun."
 
Beyond the joy of playing back on the home floor, there stands to be plenty of exciting plays for fans as the Lady Demons continue to grow within the offense and defense.  NSU has shot better than 40 percent from the field in each of the past three games, including a season-best 47 at Mississippi Valley.
 
A big part of that success has also come from behind the 3-point line as NSU has posted two games with shooting percentages at 50 or higher in the past three. Against ULM, the 65 percent effort, 11-for-17, was the best in a single game since 2009.
 
Sharpshooters Jiselle Woodson, who leads the team and the conference with a .650 mark from deep and has made 11 of her last 14 from deep, Josie Fleischmann, who has three or more 3s in five games this year, and Monette Bolden, who went 4-for-5 from deep at ULM, all rank in the top 10 in the Southland Conference in 3-point percentage.
 
The Lady Demons have been on a hot streak from deep since the 0-for-12 day at Kansas State. They have made 36 from beyond the arc in the past four games, nine per game, on a 45 percent clip. They'll need that trend to continue against a stout Tarleton defense holding opponents to a 27 percent effort from deep this season and a WAC-best 55.4 points per game.
 
The Texans picked up their first non-conference home win against a Division I opponent since moving to the DI level two years ago on Monday, a 59-55 defeat of Oral Roberts, the sixth game in which they held their opponent below 60 points. 
 
"We were able to watch their game against Oral Roberts and they pulled one out, so they're getting better every single game," Nimz said. "They've been in a lot of fights with some good Division I opponent but haven't always capitalized. They were able to Monday. They're coming in with some steam and the going rate for us is being outsized and that'll be the case again Saturday."
 
The Lady Demons have seen their fair share of big bodies around the basket this season and that will once again be the case as the Texans' 6-foot-6 Seynabou Thiam patrols the rim. She leads the WAC with 23 blocks and a 2.5 per game average, nearly a full block better per game that the next player. 
 
Jordan Todd and Jasmin Dixon are first and third in the Southland in blocks per game at 1.3 and 1.2 a night respectively.
 
"It's going to be a very tough matchup," Nimz said. "We're going to try and utilize our speed against their size, more so playing the full court instead of letting them settle into that half court offense that they're very successful at running." 
 
Saturday's game is the only home game in the month of December for the Lady Demons who travel to Kansas on Dec. 28 to close 2021 and start the new year in Katy, Texas at the SLC Preseason Tip-Off Event on Jan. 3.