McNeese Hosts Nichols Saturday in Rematch of ’24 SLC Championship

It will be the first Southland Conference double-header inside of the Legacy Center here in 2025 as McNeese gets set to host Nicholls on Saturday. The women's game will get started on Saturday at 1:00 with the men slated to tip off at 4.

In the 2024 Southland Conference Championship Game, the McNeese Cowboys completed the 3-game season sweep of the Nicholls Colonels with a 92-76 win to advance to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 22 years. The Cowboys and Colonels will square off in a Southland Conference Championship Game rematch on Saturday.

The Cowboys are on a hot streak, winning their last 5 games—their longest streak this season. They’ve also set a school record with 15 straight conference wins, returning to last season. McNeese is 10-5 overall, and 4-0 in Southland Conference play. McNeese is coming off a 92-69 victory over Northwestern State on Monday, where they made a season-high 16 three-pointers.

The Colonels come in with a 9-6 record overall and are 3-1 in conference play. They’re coming off a solid 83-61 win against East Texas A&M in their last outing. Nicholls is led by Byron Ireland who is averaging nearly 16 points per game through 4 Southland Conference games this season.

McNeese Head Coach Will Wade had high praise of the Colonels on Wednesday when he met with the media, "Nicholls is a great program and they have tremendous guard play" said Wade. "They've added some pieces in the portal and are as well-coached as any team in our league. We are going to have to be physical, they're tough."

Will Wade and his Bayou Bandits have had their fair share of injuries, but it does appear they will get Brandon Murray back this weekend, "He was 70-80% on Monday, so we anticipate he will be come to 100% by the weekend, so we should have him fully available. He was available on Monday, but we told him that we would play him if we needed him and fortunately, we didn't need him." - Wade

The game is slated to tip off at 4:00 and you can watch all of the action on ESPN+ with Tom Hoefer (PXP) and Ron Hayes (Color) on the call. It will also be Hometown Heroes Day as vehicles from the Lake Charles Fire Department, Lake Charles Police Department, Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office and more will be on site. First responders can also purchase a specially priced ticket for just $5 with valid identification.