Nicholls women’s basketball had its season come to an end on Tuesday as the Colonels (14-18) fell to the Southeastern Louisiana Lady Lions (19-11) in the Southland Conference Tournament quarterfinal, 75-57.
Unlike the first two times these teams played this season, Tuesday’s game was only competitive for the first quarter and at times in the second. Nicholls led early in the first, and even as late as the first quarter’s media timeout, but this only woke up the Southland’s defending champions. Southeastern stretched the lead to eight by the end of the first.
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The Colonels closed the gap to four points at certain moments in the second quarter, but couldn’t cut it to one possession. In the third, the bottom fell out. The Lady Lions outscored Nicholls by 13 points, with the two teams separated by 19 entering the fourth.
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The fourth quarter was more of the same, with Southeastern leading by as much as 24 on its way to clinch the win.
Extended run to close first quarter
With under four minutes to go in the first quarter, Nicholls held a 13-7 lead. While it was too early to talk upset, it certainly looked as if the Colonels could hang around.
But then, the Colonels went on an extended dry spell that lasted the rest of the first quarter and into the second, in which Southeastern scored 14 unanswered points while keeping Nicholls off the board for over four minutes of game time.
New starting lineup
After her best performance in a Colonels uniform on Monday afternoon, senior Mikayla Etienne was rewarded with a spot in the starting lineup on Tuesday. Tuesday was the senior’s ninth start of the season and her first since playing Northwestern State on Feb. 29.
Britiya Curtis out
Etienne got the start in place of Britiya Curtis, who had blossomed as one of the Colonels’ best players in the 2023-24 season. She had played in all 31 games this season prior to Tuesday, starting 26, and was named the Southland Freshman of the Year. However, her freshman season came to a quiet end as she was ruled out of Tuesday’s contest.
This article originally appeared on The Courier: Nicholls women’s basketball falls to Southeastern Louisiana
