Before Monday afternoon, Nicholls women’s basketball hadn’t qualified for the Southland Conference tournament since 2022 and hadn’t won a tournament game since 2021.
Under first-year coach Justin Payne, though, those streaks have snapped. Nicholls (14-17) defeated New Orleans (11-19) to open this season’s SLC Tournament on Monday, 73-66.
Two poor shooting performances in the first and second quarters had the Colonels down early, but the defense did just enough to prevent the Privateers from running away with it, as the largest New Orleans lead was four points, and even that came early.
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In the second half, Nicholls came back. The Colonels took the lead early in the third quarter and never looked back. While the lead never stretched to double digits — at its largest, it was nine points — every run that New Orleans went on, Nicholls found a way to answer.
Tale of two halves offensively
The Colonels ended the first quarter shooting 30% from the floor, and although they improved somewhat in the second, they still ended the first half shooting 31%.
The third quarter could not have been more different, however. Nicholls came out firing, making 52.9% of its shot attempts to take the lead for the first time since the opening quarter. In the fourth, the offense kept its performance up, shooting 50%.
Leaders in foul trouble
Lexi Alexander entered the tournament shortly after being named an All-SLC performer, and she backed it up on Monday with a double-double: 13 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. However, she had to play differently down the stretch, as she was whistled for her fourth foul with about five minutes remaining in the fourth.
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Alexander wasn’t the only double-figure scorer in foul trouble, though. Guard Mikayla Etienne was called for four fouls including a technical, while forward Deonna Brister was called for four as well.
Etienne’s season-best performance
Still, Etienne had her best performance since joining Nicholls this year. She scored 19 points — her most since February 2022, when she was still with Mississippi Valley State — on 7-of-17 shooting, including three 3-pointers. Monday was her third game in her last four scoring in the double digits.
What’s next
Nicholls will face third-seeded Southeastern Louisiana on Tuesday.
This article originally appeared on The Courier: Nicholls women’s basketball upsets UNO in Southland Tournament
