Patrick Richard scored 18 points to lead McNeese State to a 92-85 victory over Northwestern State on Wednesday night.
Diego Kaplan added 17 points, hitting four 3-pointers, and P.J. Alawoya added 13 points and 16 rebounds as the Cowboys (8-13, 3-4 Southland Conference) won for the first time in three games.
McNeese State led throughout, increasing the margin to 71-51 on Alawoya's layup with 8:48 remaining.
Northwestern State (7-13, 2-5) cut the lead to five points on three occasions, the last on Michael McConathy's 3-pointer with 11 seconds left, but C.J. Collins hit four free throws for the win.
The Cowboys shot 54.2 percent from the field (32-for-59) and dominated inside with 50 points in the paint.
Preston David added 11 points for McNeese State.
Damon Jones scored 19, Will Pratt added 18 and Devon Baker scored 13 points for Northwestern State.
