NATCHITOCHES, La – After winning back-to-back games, the Nicholls State University women's basketball team was beaten 57-47 by Northwestern State University inside Prather Coliseum on Thursday night.
 
Nicholls (10-9, 6-6 SLC) hit eight field goals and shot 47.1% from the floor in the first quarter. However, the contest was tied at 19 at the end of the frame after the Lady Demons shot 50% from the field and hit six foul shots. The Colonels went cold offensively in the second stanza as they scored six points and committed seven turnovers to fall behind by as much as 14 and trail by 10 (35-25) at the intermission.
 
The Red & Gray flipped the script in the third quarter with stout defense as they held the Lady Demons scoreless the final 7:40 of the frame. The Colonels outscored NSU 12-4 as they hit three field goals and five foul shots to pull within two heading into the fourth quarter (39-37). The final stanza was a back-and-forth affair until the Colonels committed three of their 17 turnovers in the final 1:54 to allow the Lady Demons to close the game on a 7-0 run.
 
Reigning SLC Player of the Week Marie Kenembeni continued her strong play as she hit six field goals and five shots from the charity stripe to finish with a game-high 17 points while hauling in nine rebounds. Sh'Diamond McKnight and Tanita Swift were steady hands as they added 11 and eight points respectively.
 
In a game that featured seven ties and eight lead changes, the Nicholls defense generated 13 steals and forced at least 20 turnovers for the 11th time this season. The Colonels scored 17 points off the takeaways and despite losing the rebound battle by four the Red & Gray had 15 offensive boards.
 
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The Red & Gray will cross state lines to close the month against East Texas A&M in Commerce, Texas on Saturday, Jan. 31.