The Northwestern State Demons basketball team is the men's basketball team that represents

Northwestern State University Northwestern State University of Louisiana (NSU) is a public university primarily situated in Natchitoches, Louisiana, with a nursing campus in Shreveport and general campuses in Leesville/Fort Polk and Alexandria. It is a part of the Univer ...

in Natchitoches,

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

, United States. The team currently competes in the

Southland Conference The Southland Conference, abbreviated as SLC, is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the South Central United States (specifically Texas and Louisiana). It participates in the NCAA's Division I for all sports; for football, it ...

and is coached by Corey Gipson who is in his 1st season as head coach. The Demons have appeared in the NCAA tournament three times, most recently in

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History

Mike McConathy era (1999–2022)

Mike McConathy was hired in 1999. In his first season, the team went 17–13 and finished fourth in the Southland Conference. In 2001, McConathy led the Demons to their first ever NCAA tournament appearance. The Demons won the first play in game after the NCAA expanded the men's tournament from 64 to 65 teams. The Demons defeated Winthrop in that game, before losing to

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

in the next round. In 2005, the Demons finished the season 21–12, 13–3 to win the Southland Conference regular season championship. However, the Demons 10-game winning streak was stopped by Southeastern Louisiana in the Southland tournament championship. The Demons would repeat as Southland regular season champions the following year. This time, they defeated Sam Houston State in the Southland tournament championship to earn their second appearance in the NCAA tournament. In the NCAA tournament as a No. 14 seed, the Demons earned one of the biggest upsets in the tournament by beating No. 15-ranked

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

64–63 in the rirst round. Jermaine Wallace hit a three-pointer with less than a second left in the game to give the Demons the victory, their second in NCAA history. The Demons advanced to the second round where they lost to

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...

67–54. After some disappointing seasons where they only finished above .500 twice, the Demons returned to prominence in the 2012–13 season when they went 23–9, 15–3 in Southland play to finish in second place. The Demons defeated

Stephen F. Austin Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas,Hatch (1999), p. 43. he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization ...

to win the Southland tournament championship and earn their third trip to the NCAA tournament. However, they lost to

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

in the second round (formerly and now known as the first round).

Postseason appearances

NCAA tournament

The Demons have appeared in the NCAA tournament three times. Their combined record is 2–3.

CIT results

The Demons have appeared in the

CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament The CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT) was an American men's college basketball postseason tournament founded by Collegeinsider.com. The tournament was oriented toward schools that did not get selected for the NCAA Division I men's ...

(CIT) one time. Their record is 0–1.

NAIA tournament

The Demons have appeared in one NAIA tournament. Their record is 1–1.

References

External links

* {{Southland Conference men's basketball navbox