NACOGDOCHES, Texas – For 35 minutes on Monday afternoon Northwestern State showed the effort, fight and determination it took to win a game. The final five resulted in yet another frustrating defeat, but one where first-year head coach Anna Nimz saw some of the best basketball of the season from her young squad.
 
"I don't know that it was more frustrating that the others," Nimz said of the loss after seeing a nine-point lead with less than five minutes remaining slip away. "It does stink to be so close and not come out with it, but we played 35 minutes of great basketball. It's a different frustrating, one that pulls on your heart strings in an almost way more than a mad way."
 
The Lady Demons (0-16, 0-11) will have to put the frustration of the closest loss of the season behind them quickly, pull the 35 minutes of quality and growth from the game and move on to the toughest opponent remaining on the schedule in conference-leader Stephen F. Austin.
 
The final road game of the season tips off at 6:30 p.m. and can be heard locally in Natchitoches on 92.3 FM with live streaming audio available at www.nsudemons.com or on the NSU Athletics Mobile App, a free download from the Apple or Google Stores.
 
Against Nicholls the Lady Demons fed off each other, both on the offensive and defensive sides. The initial spark from JaMiya Braxton, playing in her third game since being ruled eligible for competition, started a 20-4 run in the first quarter that carried the team the closest it's been to a coveted win.
 
Braxton, along with Erin Harris and Anessa Dussette, reached double figures in the scoring, the second time NSU had three players score 10 or more points in a game and the first time in conference.
 
Braxton (16) and Harris (14) both set new career highs in the game.
 
"Last night our shots were falling more than they have been, and the girls really rallied around that," Nimz said. "I heard Erin, and maybe some people don't think it's a big deal, but she stroked one and immediately said, probably the loudest I've ever heard her, 'good pass.' That's something that hasn't always been a thing."
 
All season NSU has been forced to lean on young players to carry the load. Freshmen like Harris and Osha Cummings have had games and moments where they've played beyond their years, but with the lead in the final stretch against Nicholls, a spot the Lady Demons haven't been in, the lack of experience on the floor showed.
 
If the Lady Demons are indeed playing their best basketball at the end of the season, it could not come at a better time as they face top-ranked SFA.
 
The Ladyjacks (18-2, 10-0) are the lone undefeated conference and have won an impressive 13 straight this season, 23 straight at home dating back to last season and 67-3 in Nacogdoches in the past five seasons.
 
SFA tops the conference scoring defense. They put in 82.3 points per game, the only team averaging more than 80 a night, and hold opponents to 49.9, the only team allowing less than 50 a night.
 
Against a challenging foe Nimz hopes the growth from Nicholls will bolster the team to put together a full performance in the waning days of the season.
 
"There was growth in the program in that game (Nicholls)," Nimz said. "We didn't win, but there was growth. It's exciting to see. I hope they carry over those 35 minutes. I told them that was 35 minutes of great basketball. We've got four more games to lay it on the line and put together 40. What do we have to lose?"