NEW ORLEANS  – New Orleans native Tia Charles put on a show in front of her hometown with a career-high 25 points and Cassidy Barrios scored 18 of her 20 points in the second half, but the Nicholls State University women's basketball team came up short against New Orleans, falling 81-77 Saturday evening at Lakefront Arena.
 
With the loss, Nicholls slipped to 8-14 on the season and 5-6 in Southland play. New Orleans improved its record to 11-10 and 6-5 SLC.
 
Charles accounted for six of the Colonels' 11 3-pointers and scored 15 in the first half to give Nicholls a 31-29 lead at the break. The Colonels led the entire first half, but the second half was a different story as the teams had 13 lead changes.
 
The game was tied at 69 before Charles nailed her final 3-pointer of the night to give Nicholls a 72-69 lead. But Halie Matthews capped her own 7-0 run with jumper to pull UNO within one and a basket-and-one to give the Privateers a 74-72 lead with 1:32 to go.
 
Nicholls couldn't come up with a field goal and were forced to foul, resulting in three free throws by Randy Brown to make it a five-point game. Hope Pawlowski connected on a 3-pointer with 18 seconds left to make it a one-possession game, but Brown added four more free throws in the final seconds to secure the win.
 
The Colonels outrebounded UNO, 38-31, and had 15 on the offensive glass, but scored just 10 second-chance points. Pawlowski led Nicholls with 10 rebounds and had a double-double with 11 points.
 
Nicholls shot 42 percent for the game, led by Barrios' 8-for-12 day. Barrios continues to fill the stat sheet for the Colonels, adding seven rebounds and three assists. In a back-and-forth third quarter which saw nine lead changes, Barrios accounted for 14 of the Colonels' 22 points.
 
In the first half, it was the Charles show. Although the teams combined for just 21 points in the first quarter, with Nicholls leading 11-10, Charles had all but two points for the Colonels. She then started the second quarter with back-to-back 3-pointers to give Nicholls a 19-13 advantage. UNO closed out the half on a 7-2 run to make it a two-point game.
 
UNO had five players score in double figures, with three coming off the bench. Brown led the Privateers with 23 points on 7 of 15 shooting.
 
STUFF STOPHER

Nicholls will return home for its annual Stuff Stopher game, hosting Stephen F. Austin on Wednesday, Feb. 8. Tipoff at Stopher Gym is scheduled for 6 p.m.