Box Score and Play-by-Play

NACOGDOCHES, Texas -  The Nicholls State University women's basketball team (8-15, 3-7 Southland Conference) turned in a dominating second half on Wednesday night, shooting 52.2 percent from the field after the break to erase a one-point halftime defecit and cruise to a 75-62 win at Stephen F. Austin (8-14, 5-4 Southland Conference) in Johnson Coliseum.

The victory marks the first time since the 2004-05 season that the Colonels have won eight games and the first time since the 2007-08 season that Nicholls has won at least three conference games.

The Colonels were led by a trio of double digit scorers, including a pair of 20-point performances.  Freshman guard KK Babin racked up a game-high 22 points on 8-for-17 shooting while dishing out four assists.  Sophomore forward Alisha Allen scored 12 of her 20 points in the second half and grabbed a game-high nine rebounds to finish one board shy of a double-double.  Finally, senior guard Ricshanda Bickham added 18 points while grabbing seven rebounds.

After a first half that saw two tie scores and five lead changes, the Colonels found themselves down 39-32 with 2:40 left in the opening frame.  However, Nicholls closed the first half strong, cutting the SFA lead to just 41-40 at the half.

That momentum carried over through halftime as Nicholls opened the second half with an 8-0 run to take a 48-41 lead.  The Colonels kept their foot on the gas, expanding their lead to 11 with 8:30 left as a three-pointer by Babin made it 63-52.

SFA tried to mount a comeback, rallying to within four as a pair of free throws cut the Nicholls lead to 63-59 with 4:55 left.  However, Nicholls responded as Babin jump-started a 12-3 run that would last the rest of the ballgame.  The Gonzales native pushed the Nicholls lead back up to five with a layup on the next possession then came away with a steal and finished a fast break layup on SFA's next trip up the floor to make it 67-59 with 4:22 left.

SFA got a three-pointer to get back to within five, but the Colonels, who held the Ladyjacks to 23.3 percent shooting in the second half would not allow SFA back onto the scoreboard for the remainder of the game.

Forced to foul, SFA sent Nicholls to the line six times in the final 3:30 with the Colonels sinking all six attempts for the 75-62 final.

The win puts the Colonels 1.0 game behind the idle UT Arlington Mavericks for the eighth and final Southland Conference Tournament spot.  The Colonels are 2.0 games behind the Mavericks in the loss column with Southeastern Louisiana tied with the Colonels and Texas State 0.5 games in back of the Mavericks.

The Colonels will now return to Nicholls to take on the defending Southland Conference regular season and tournament champion Lamar Cardinals on Saturday.  The Colonels will be hosting their annual Pink Zone Game in support of Breast Cancer Research.  Nicholls will be honoring breast cancer survivors during the game, and the Colonels will be collecting pledges for every three pointer they make in support of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, named after longtime North Carolina State women's basketball head coach, and breast cancer victim Kay Yow.

Tipoff between the Colonels and Cardinals is set for 3:30 p.m. in Stopher Gym.