NATCHITOCHES—Home is where the heart is.

So far, home has also been where wins have been for Northwestern State, as the Demons (12-10, 9-4) have won seven of its nine games at home and four of five during Southland Conference play.

The Demons aim to use that to their advantage when they open a stretch of five of the final seven at home, starting Thursday when they welcome Lamar (15-7, 10-3) to Prather Coliseum for a monster contest in the SLC standings.

Tip-off is at 6:30 p.m. and can be watched on ESPN+.

"We have our true blue followers, but we need some more people to recognize the runs," head coach Anna Nimz said. "We have some kids who are really lighting it up and that is fun for people to watch. We've got to have a good following from the town.

The girls are doing their part and winning and now all of us need to do our part and supporting them and helping us protect Prather.

"Obviously, it is always awesome to finish with five of seven at home. It puts you in good position to make a run down the stretch heading into the conference tournament."

Northwestern State sits just one game back of Lamar for a second place, as the conference is a jumbled mess from second to fifth place, as four teams are separated by a just a game and a half.

While Northwestern State has been a force at home, it also has done well away from Prather as well, as it is coming off three consecutive road victories by an average of 14.3 points per game and winning all three by at least eight per game.

The Demons are coming off a dominant victory at McNeese, winning 80-56, the second consecutive season Northwestern State has rolled to a conference road victory of at least 24 points, dominating New Orleans 72-43 last season.

With the victory, the Demons have now surpassed last season's win total and have the most victories since 2021-22.

In the first meeting between Northwestern State and Lamar, Mya Blake dropped in 25 points. Blake has continued her strong play with another Southland Conference Player of the Week honor after averaging 21 points per game, including 32 in a big win at Nicholls during the three-game road win streak.

While Blake is the leading in the conference in scoring, Lamar's Sabria Dean is right behind her, recording 16.2 points per game.

Both players have to compete against two of the best defenses in the SLC, as they are two of the top three teams in the league in scoring during conference games, both surrendering fewer than 57 points per game.

The two teams also are two of the top three in field goal percentage defense in league games with Northwestern State taking the top spot, allowing teams to just shoot 33.9 percent from the floor and 21.9 percent from deep.

In the previous meeting, Akasha Davis posted 21 points and 18 rebounds, including 10 offensive boards. She has recorded four double-doubles during SLC play and six overall.

"Our defense is the top in the Southland and top nationally in different categories," Nimz said. "We really hang our hat on our defense and discipline and following scouts. These have been team wins and everybody is really settling into their roles."

Following the game, the Demons finish off the weekend with a home date with rival Stephen F. Austin on Saturday, as they aim for revenge for losing a close, hard-fought battle in Nacogdoches. Saturday's game is Mike McConathy court dedication, named in honor of the winningest college basketball coach in Louisiana history.