Led by LiAnn McCarthy with 25 points, Nicholls defeated Sam Houston 67-63 in a Southland Conference women's basketball game Wednesday in Huntsville.

Three Bearkats scored in double figures as Angela Beadle totaled 18 points, Shernise Robertson 16 and Amanda Barnes as season high 14. Beadle also led both teams with 11 rebounds.

Success beyond the three-point arc and at the charity stripe and taking advantage of Bearkat miscues were the key for the Nicholls victory that upped the Colonels' record to 4-10 for the season and 2-2 in Southland Conference play.

Nicholls hit 10-of-25 from three point range (40 percent) and 13-of-18 at the line including eight free throws in the final three minutes. The Colonels converted Sam Houston's 20 turnovers into 18 points.

“Nicholls got hot early. We didn't do a good job of contesting their shots,” Sam Houston head coach Brenda Welch-Nichols said. “They shot the ball well, making more than they usually do.”

Nicholls led for 24 minutes in the game. The Colonels took the lead to stay on a three-pointer by Cassidy Barrios to go up 52-51 with 7:44 to go in the final quarter. Sam Houston cut the margin to one point, 61-59, on two free throws by Beadle with 1:55 remaining. But the Colonels finished the game with a 6-4 run for the victory.

“The great thing about the Southland Conference schedule is we don't have much time to dwell on this loss,” Welch-Nichols said. “We have to regroup and get ready for McNeese in Lake Charles Saturday. We need to clean up our post play and rebounding and to do a better job of contesting shots.”

Sam Houston jumped out to an eight point lead, 15-7, after a three-pointer by Robertson with 3:35 left in the opening period. Nicholls closed the quarter with a 7-2 run to trail by only three, 17-14, at the opening period's end.

The Colonels continued their run in the second quarter, building a four-point lead, 28-24, with 4:31 left in the half. Lay-ups by Ashleigh Cooper at the 4:23 mark and Kamry Orr with 3:50 knotted the score. The half ended with the game still tied, 37-37.

Both teams shot well in the opening half with Sam Houston hitting 14-of-25 from the floor (56 percent) and Nicholls 13-of-26 (50 percent). Turnovers were the Kats' Achilles heel in the first 20 minutes as the Colonels picked up 14 of their 37 points after Sam Houston miscues.