THIBODAUX, La.  – Before a three-game home stand to begin February, the Nicholls State University women's basketball team will finish the first month of Southland Conference action across state lines against Texas A&M-Commerce on Saturday, Jan. 27. The action from The Field House in Commerce, Texas will begin at 3:30 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN+.
 
Last week, both teams split their pair of games. The Colonels beat UIW in San Antonio (65-59) and was clipped by Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (58-52). The Lions became the first team in the SLC to beat Lamar (73-70) before falling to Southeastern (49-65).
 
Currently, the Red & Gray are 8th in the SLC standings while Lions are 6th after suffering a 69-58 loss to Texas A&M- Corpus Christi on Thursday night.
 
Nicholls (8-10, 2-4 SLC) is spearheaded by sophomore forward Lexi Alexander who has the sixth best scoring average (13.1) and ninth best rebounding average (5.3) in the conference. She has also dished three assists or more assists in four conference games.
 
In the win over the UIW, junior forward Deonna Brister hit seven field goals, including two from beyond the arc, and grabbed five rebounds and two steals. She finished the contest with 19 points and now averages 7.3 points per game in conference action.
 
The Red & Gray also features one of the leagues' most efficient scorers, freshman guard Britiya Curtis, who averages 9.8 points while shooting 43 percent from the field and 37.5 percent from long range. She poured in 18 points in the Colonels' win last week.
 
Nicholls third leading scorer is senior guard Kyla Hamilton (8.6). She is a two-way force as she averages nearly two steals a game, which is the fifth best mark in the SLC. Her classmate Mikayla Etienne has reached double figures four time since the beginning of league action and has hit 3 or more shots from deep in three of those games.
 
The Lions (8-9, 3-4 SLC) roster features four players that score at least 11 points per contest. Mia Deck leads the way (13.6), followed by Mary Delgado (12.9), Ahmya Boyce, and Jordyn Newsome (11.4). Deck leads the squad in rebounds (6.1), and Delgado paces the offense with 3.3 assists per game.
 
The third all-time matchup between the Colonels and Lions will be between first time Division-I head coaches, Justin Payne, and Valerie King. Last season, Nicholls dropped both contest against the Lions in their inaugural D-I and SLC season.