Dozen Demons score in 107-80 cruise past LSU-Shreveport
November 28, 2004
Story courtesy of Northwestern Sports Information Department 11/24/2004NATCHITOCHES -- Junior guard Kerwin Forges missed only one free throw while scoring 19 points Wednesday night as preseason Southland Conference favorite Northwestern State cruised past NAIA Division I LSU-Shreveport 107-80 in a non-conference college basketball game as the Demons tipped off a five-game homestand at Prather Coliseum.
The Demons (1-2) got a second-straight team-high scoring outing from Forges, a 6-4 guard who hit all four of his shots, including a 3-pointer, while going 10-of-11 on free throws and snagging nine rebounds in just 16 minutes off the bench.
LSU-Shreveport (5-1) got a game-high 21 points from former NSU player Fredericko Payne, the leading scorer in NAIA Division I with a 31-point average in his second year with the Pilots.
Northwestern picked up 16 points by Jermaine Wallace, 13 from Demetrius Bell and 11 points, a career-best 13 assists, six rebounds and four steals by point guard Tyronn Mitchell. The Demons shot 52.5 percent for the game and outrebounded the Pilots 53-26.
After having to come from behind to beat the Pilots 88-80 last season, the Demons were in control throughout Wednesday night, never trailing and leading 17-5 four minutes into the game. It was 55-41 at halftime and the lead grew as large as 30 points late in the game while Northwestern got scoring from 12 different players, including 62 points off the bench.
"We've grown up a bit and hopefully we've improved and maybe that shows up a bit," said sixth-year Demons coach Mike McConathy. "The pace of the game was wide-open and that led to some pretty sloppy turnovers on our part, but we can run. The key is that we had 53 rebounds, and when you have the ball off the glass, you can get out on the break.
"It's nice to get the homestand started with an entertaining win, the type of game people who were here would come back to watch again," said McConathy. "We're back here on Friday afternoon and hopefully we can have another successful game."
Northwestern plays at home Friday afternoon at 2 against Southwestern Kansas
