MONROE – Northwestern State begins a three-game road swing on Tuesday when it faces long-time rival ULM in what has become a much-anticipated matchup.
 
The Demons (4-4) have won four games in a row for the first time since 2015-16 while the Warhawks (7-1) are riding a seven-game winning streak as the two square off in Fant-Ewing Coliseum at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+.
 
The nucleus of the current winning streak for the Demons has been the performance of the defense. For the first time in program history NSU has held four straight opponents to 55 points or less and only allowing an average of 41.2 point per game during that stretch.
 
One of the many benefits of the lock-down defense the team has played has been the way it has provided a new level of poise and confidence in the team in late-game, tense moments, especially in the two most recent wins on the road at Southern and against Tarleton State.
 
"I was really proud of the composure they showed down the stretch against Tarleton," head coach Anna Nimz said. "We got down in the third and at times in the past we've allowed those things to weigh us down. We got down in third there and we came back out immediately and capitalized on some possessions and continued to stay locked in on defense. 
 
"I think that's the next level for us. Maintaining that defensive execution. On offense they were able to play with more composure and belief in themselves. We tell them all the time how much we believe in them, but the more they can do that themselves, they gain more confidence, and the game naturally slows down and the composure rises."
 
The Demons saw a late lead slip away when they hosted Grambling on Nov. 22, their first game back after a weeklong postponement due to widespread team illness. Just two weeks later a new level of calm and demeanor on the road in a tough environment paid dividends in a win and lead to a quality win at home three days later.
 
Part of that poise came from Jiselle Woodson who scored 13 of her game-high 19 points in the fourth quarter after putting in seven over the final 10 minutes against Southern, nearly half the team's total points.
 
During the last two fourth quarter periods, Woodson is also a clutch 11-for-14 from the free throw line.
 
That poise and calm will be needed once again on Tuesday as the Demons take on a new-look Warhawks have already matched their win total from a season ago in eight games under first-year head coach Missy Bilderback.
 
It is no secret that the success thus far for the Warhawks this season runs through transfer Daisha Bradford. She leads ULM in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals per game after rejoining her junior college coach following two years as a starter at Clemson.
 
"She is a legitimate Power 5 plater playing in the Sun Belt," Nimz said. "She's excelling even more at ULM than she was before she transferred and being a more dominant player across the board. She has the I.Q. She has the skill. She's a facilitator. She's a shooter. She scores on all three levels."
 
Bradford ranks ninth in the NCAA in points per game this season at 23.0 having scored 25 or more points in each of the past three games with back-to-back 30-point outings earlier this season. She is also pulling in more than seven rebounds per game and dishing out more than five assists per night on top of that.
 
"Just how people take pride in 20-point games, we are challenging our girls to take pride in containing her," Nimz said. "We need our group, our team because it will be a team effort, to have that kind of pride in their defense. It's going to be a collective team effort against her. She's incredibly good."
 
The Warhawks have two other players also averaging double-digit scoring on the season in Jakayla Johnson (13.0), a transfer from Auburn, and Katlyn Manuel (11.3).