Jan. 9, 2010

Final Stats

THIBODAUX - Down six points at the half, the Nicholls State University men's basketball team (5-9, 1-0 Southland Conference) rallied past Northwestern State (5-9, 0-1 Southland) for a 79-72 win in the Southland Conference opener for both teams.

The Demons started strong by shooting 14-for-21 (66.7%) from the field in the opening frame to take a 42-36 halftime lead. However, the Colonel defense stepped up in the second half, limiting Northwestern State to 8-for-25 shooting (32.0%) the rest of the way.

Meanwhile, the Colonel trio of sophomore guard/forward Fred Hunter, junior swingman Anatoly Bose and sophomore point guard Chris Iles tallied 20-plus points each as the Colonels claimed the conference opener 79-72 at Stophr Gym on Saturday night.

Hunter led all scorers with 25 points, a season-best and just two points shy of his career high. The Denton, Texas native got into foul trouble early, limiting his playing time to just 25 minutes. However, Hunter went 9-for-14 (64.2%) from the field to ignite the Colonel offense on several key possessions and lead all scorers.

Bose picked up his first double-double of the season, overcoming a 4-for-14 outing from the field by grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds and going 10-for-12 from the free throw line to tally 20 points. It marked Bose's sixth straight game with 20-plus points. The Sydney, Australia native has scored 20 or more points in ten of the first 14 games of the season.

Iles turned in his third 20-point game of the season, going 6-for-13 from the field. The Houston native dished out a game-high five assists and went 6-for-6 from the free throw line, including four in the final minute to help put the game on ice, en route to 20 points.

The Colonels fell victim to a fast-paced Demon offense in the opening frame. After Nicholls claimed a 14-12 lead with 13:01 left in the first, Northwestern State outpaced the Colonels 29-15 over the next 10:07. A Damon Jones three-pointer capped the run and gave the Demons a 12-point lead, their largest of the night.

However, Nicholls closed the half with a 7-1 run to head to the lockerroom down 42-36.

The Colonels continued to grind away at the Demons before finally reclaiming the lead with just under 11 minutes left. Iles' layup put Nicholls up 52-50 with 10:46 reamaining.

Nicholls out-rebounded the Demons 21-16 and connected on all but four of their 22 second half free throw attempts to stay ahead of Northwestern State's high powered offense.

After Northwestern State brought it to within two with 3:31 left, Nicholls closed the night with a 15-10 run to hang on for their first conference win of the season.

Saturday's victory marked Nicholls' fourth straight win over Northwestern State. The Colonels have won five of their last six against the Demons and have not lost to Northwestern State at home since 2007.

The Colonels will return to action when they head to San Antonio on Wednesday for a tilt with the Texas-San Antonio Roadrunners.