NATCHITOCHES – Home is a welcome sight when you've been on the road for any length of time. Northwestern State is hopeful that sentiment rings true in more ways than on when it returns to Prather Coliseum on Saturday.
 
After a third road loss in a week's time, and the fifth in a row in conference play, the Lady Demons (9-13, 5-7) begin a three-game home stand on Saturday with a rematch of Thursday's game against Texas A&M-Commerce.
 
Tipoff on Military Appreciation Day in Prather Coliseum is set for 1 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN+ as the Lions come to Natchitoches for the first time in program history.
 
The past three games have had two very distinct things in common for the Demons: bleak first halves followed by energetic second halves and someone scoring 20 points, the majority of which come in the spirited second half.
 
Sharna Ayres was the most recent player to join the 20-point game club this season for NSU, getting a career-high 21 on Thursday at A&M-Commerce. She was the third different player to score in the 20s on the three-game road swing and the fourth in the current five-game streak with a 20-point outing. 
 
Her 7-for-9 shooting effort, all from beyond the arc, was propped up by her 4-for-4 stretch in the third quarter and came just days after head coach Anna Nimz reframed the Aussie sharpshooter's role on the floor.
 
"I rephrased it to her this week as 'do your job'," Nimz said. "I told her if you're not shooting 15 shots a game, not all of them have to be 3s, but 15 shots, you're not doing you job. She showed up on Thursday and did her job and excelled at it.
 
"She proves how great of a shooter she is day in and day out at practice and in individual work outs. What she did at Commerce is something that I truly believe she's capable of doing nearly every single night."
 
Candice Parramore, who has been the most consistent scorer all season with 12 double-digit efforts in her 19 total games including the current six-game streak she carries into Saturday, began the 20-point streak during NSU's most recent home games.
 
 Ayres (21) and Joelle Johnson (22) have recorded career high points in two of the past three games to push the streak to its current five-game mark.
 
While the individual performances are a welcome sight in any game, for the Demons to find the success they want, they need more people making contributions. With three straight home games, and a renewed commitment to corrections and changes, Nimz is hopeful those contributions come soon.
 
"We need to get to the point where, yeah we're getting someone leading the way like that, but three or four more in double digits," Nimz said. "You sprinkle in a high eight and a six here or there. The ball's got to be moved side to side and the more we can share it the less pressure it puts on the individuals that are coming off a big game to feel like they have to do it again. 
 
"We have to get contributions from everybody. You have to do something in the time that you're earning, that can mean points, rebounds, assists whatever it may be. Great that we've had a couple players, and different ones, have those kinds of games but we need production from everybody."
 
The Lions got that exact type of production in their win over the Demons on Thursday, having a 20-point scorer, two in double digits, and three more with six or more points, showing why it is one of the top-rated offenses in the Southland Conference.
 
With first-hand experience of what the Lion attack looks like, and stretches of solid offensive production, NSU  is seeking a more crisp 40 minutes of basketball on Saturday.
 
"In our offense we have to get up a certain number of shots and we haven't done that the last few games," Nimz said. "The best thing about basketball season is you get another game, and you have to be able to move forward. The past is the past and the future is where we have to focus."