LAKE CHARLES, La. - The Nicholls State University men's basketball team will battle No. 8 McNeese in the quarterfinals of the 2023 Southland Conference Tournament Monday evening at the Legacy Center in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. and the game will air on ESPN+. 

For the first time since 2006, the tournament will be held at an on-campus site with McNeese serving as host. The SLC Tourney was in Houston in 2007 before moving to Katy, Texas for the next 15 years. 

Nicholls (16-14) finished the regular season with an 11-7 mark in the Southland to claim the No. 4 seed and earn a bye into the second round. The Cowboys advanced to take on the Colonels after their 79-78 win over No. 5 Texas A&M-Commerce on Sunday evening. 

Nicholls swept the season series against McNeese, winning 73-64 at home and 71-68 at the Legacy Center in back-to-back games. The Colonels carry a seven-game winning streak in the all-time series. 

The Colonels are led by Caleb Huffman and Latrell Jones, both who were named All-Southland on Friday. Huffman was a first-team selection after ranking fifth in the Southland in scoring at 16.3 points per game. Huffman was also an All-Defensive selection, ranking 22nd in the NCAA with 2.1 steals per contest. In the Colonels' road win at McNeese, Huffman made the go-ahead bucket with 10 seconds remaining

Jones was the team's second-leading scorer at 14.6 ppg, good for 11th in the league and landing him on second team. The New Orleans native was a third-team selection last year in his first campaign with the Colonels. 

Nicholls will be making its third ever appearance as the No. 4 seed in the Southland Tournament. The Colonels' first appearance in the tourney was as a No. 4 seed where they lost to UT-Arlington in 1992. Nicholls was also the 4-seed in '99, falling 100-87 to McNeese.