SAN ANTONIO, Texas — The Northwestern State men's basketball team led for most of the final 10 minutes Saturday afternoon, but a frantic finish and two free throws at the horn sent the Demons to a 76–74 loss against UIW at the McDermott Center.

NSU (6-12, 4-5) is no stranger to tight, exciting games. The previous two contests for the Demons ended in one-point victories.

This one followed a similar script, except NSU found itself on the other end of the result.

"We played well for about 30 minutes," third-year head coach Rick Cabrera said. "But we didn't get enough stops down the stretch, and when you're on the road, your defense has to be better than your offense. Our's wasn't."

The Demons built what appeared to be a controlling position midway through the second half behind dominant interior play from Willie Williams, who scored a career-high 18 points, while anchoring the paint on both ends.

After a Landyn Jumawan steal, NSU pushed the ball in transition, with Justin Redmond floating an alley-oop to Izzy Miles to extend the Demon lead to 13 at the 8:51 mark, momentum firmly swinging toward the visitors.

NSU looked poised to put the game away, but the Cardinals had other ideas.

UIW (9-9, 4-5) responded with an efficient closing stretch, converting seven of its final nine shot attempts behind former Demon Love Bettis II and second-leading scorer Tahj Staveskie.

Over the next several minutes, the Cardinals chipped away at the deficit, trimming the lead to four on a fading right-wing 3 from Bettis.

"Good players are going to make plays," Cabrera said. "We had some defensive mishaps, and they hit open shots. That's on us."

Micah Thomas, a 94 percent free-throw shooter, answered on the ensuing possession. Fouled by Bettis, Thomas calmly knocked down both free throws to give Northwestern State a 68–63 edge with under four minutes remaining.

UIW refused to fade.

With just under 45 seconds to play, Staveskie found Jordan Pyke popping out to the top of the key, where Pyke buried a 3-pointer to tie the game at 74–74 with 32 seconds left.

NSU's final possession ended without a field goal, setting up one last chance for the Cardinals.

With two seconds remaining, Staveskie drove into the lane and was fouled as time expired. He converted both free throws, giving UIW the lead and sealing the 76–74 victory.

Miles led the Demons with 20 points, including 14 in the first half, while Williams added his career-high 18 points and nine rebounds. Thomas finished with 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting.

Despite the result, Cabrera pointed to a clear focus moving forward.

"We've got to guard for 40 minutes," he said. "You've got to pack your defense and rebound. If you don't do that in this league, you're going to lose."

NSU faces a quick turnaround, heading to Houston on Monday to take on the Huskies in Sharp Gymnasium, with tipoff set for 7 p.m.