Mike McConathy Court dedication ceremony set for Feb. 15

NATCHITOCHES - The site where Mike McConathy recorded nearly half of his Louisiana-record 682 college basketball coaching victories officially will bear his name beginning Feb. 15. 

At halftime of Northwestern State's Southland Conference men's basketball game against Stephen F. Austin, the playing surface at Prather Coliseum will become Mike McConathy Court in honor of the state's leader in college basketball coaching victories. 

The court naming will highlight the 1 p.m. doubleheader with Stephen F. Austin, the playing surface at Prather Coliseum will become Mike McConathy Court in honor of the state's leader in college basketball coaching victories. 

The court naming will highlight the 1 p.m. doubleheader with Stephen F. Austin, which includes a tribute lunch for McConathy between the men's and women's games. 

The Feb. 15 ceremony also will mark the launch of the Mike McConathy Scholarship Fund, which will support Northwestern student-athletes who have exhausted their NCAA eligibility before completing their degrees. 

Former Demon basketball platers and support staff are being asked to share their photos of coach McConathy to be displayed throughout the day by sending them to cole@nsula.edu. 

McConathy compiled 330 of his state-record victories while coaching at Northwestern, the alma mater of his father, two uncles, both of his sons and two of his nephews. 

During his 23-season run as the the Demon's head coach, McConathy led Northwestern to its first three NCAA Tournament appearances, including the first two NCAA Tournament victories in school history.

The 2005-06 "Demons of Destiny" squad lives in NCAA Tournament lore after Jermaine Wallace's last-gasp 3-pointer lifted Northwestern to a stunning upset of No.3-seeded Iowa - a play that was named the Pontiac Game Changing Performance that landed Northwestern a $100,000 scholarship. 

McConathy's teams were a constant presence at the top of the Southland Conference standings, winning the first two Southland tiles in program history, reaching four SLC Tournament title games and winning three of them. 

Additionally, McConathy's teams were standouts in the classroom, landing numerous National Association of Basketball Coaches Team Academic Excellence Awards and holding a graduation rate of around 90 percent. 

Away from the bench, McConathy's career, which also included the starting of Bossier Parish Community College's program into a national tournament participant, landed hum the Louisiana Association of Basketball Coaches Association's Mr. Basketball Award in 2023. 

He is a member of the N-Club Hall of Fame and Northwestern's Hall of Distinguished Educators. 

Further information regarding RSVPs for the event will be shared at a later date. Keep up to date with Northwestern State Basketball on X and Instagram at @NSUDemonsMBB and follow on Facebook (NSUDemonsBAsketball).

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