# 2023–24 Nicholls Colonels men's basketball team

The 2023–24 Nicholls State Colonels men's basketball team represented Nicholls State University in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Colonels, led by first-year head coach Tevon Saddler, played their home games at Stopher Gymnasium in Thibodaux, Louisiana as members of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 20–14, 13–5 in Southland play, to finish third in the conference.

## Preseason polls
### Southland Conference Poll

The Southland Conference released its preseason poll on October 10, 2023. Receiving 71 votes overall, the Colonels were picked to finish sixth in the conference.
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | Southeastern | 144 (6) |
| 2 | McNeese | 142 (6) |
| 3 | New Orleans | 132 (3) |
| 4 | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | 124 (5) |
| 5 | Northwestern State | 84 |
| 6 | Nicholls | 71 |
| 7 | Texas A&M–Commerce | 66 |
| 8 | Houston Christian | 50 |
| 9 | Lamar | 45 |
| 10 | Incarnate Word | 42 |

### Preseason All Conference

Micah Thomas, a guard, was selected as a second team Preseason All Conference member.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| November 6, 2023* 8:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Tulane | L 81–91 | 0–1 | 24 – J. West Jr. | 13 – M. Collins | 4 – J. West Jr. | Devlin Fieldhouse (1,689) New Orleans, LA |
| November 10, 2023* 7:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | | at LSU | W 68–66 | 1–1 | 18 – D. Smith | 6 – tied (2) | 4 – tied (2) | Pete Maravich Assembly Center (7,255) Baton Rouge, LA |
| November 15, 2023* 6:00 p.m. | | vs. Denver Jaguar Classic | L 85–91 | 1–2 | 22 – J. West Jr. | 8 – tied (2) | 6 – D. Smith | Mitchell Center (1,109) Mobile, AL |
| November 16, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at South Alabama Jaguar Classic | W 102–97 $^{3OT}$ | 2–2 | 31 – J. West Jr. | 10 – D. Smith | 6 – J. West Jr. | Mitchell Center (3,445) Mobile, AL |
| November 17, 2023* 6:00 p.m. | | vs. SIU Edwardsville Jaguar Classic | L 51–60 | 2–3 | 16 – D. Smith | 8 – tied (2) | 2 – J. West Jr. | Mitchell Center (1,001) Mobile, AL |
| November 21, 2023* 6:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | Blue Mountain Christian | W 86–56 | 3–3 | 18 – M. Gray Jr. | 10 – O. Koureissi | 5 – J. West Jr. | Stopher Gymnasium (450) Thibodaux, LA |
| November 24, 2023* 1:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | | at No. 25 Mississippi State | L 61–74 | 3–4 | 17 – J. West Jr. | 13 – J. West Jr. | 4 – J. West Jr. | Humphrey Coliseum (7,571) Starkville, MS |
| November 28, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at No. 9 Baylor | L 70–108 | 3–5 | 17 – R. Brown III | 8 – J. West Jr. | 2 – R. Brown III | Ferrell Center (7,166) Waco, TX |
| December 2, 2023* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Louisiana Tech | L 55–68 | 3–6 | 16 – J. White | 8 – J. West Jr. | 3 – B. Ireland | Thomas Assembly Center (2,018) Ruston, LA |
| December 9, 2023* 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Elizabeth City | W 84–70 | 4–6 | 25 – B. Ireland | 9 – J. West Jr. | 3 – J. West Jr. | Stopher Gymnasium (544) Thibodaux, LA |
| December 19, 2023* 7:30 p.m., BTN | | at Maryland | L 67–73 | 4–7 | 18 – D. Smith | 18 – J. West Jr. | 5 – D. Smith | Xfinity Center (11,004) College Park, MD |
| December 22, 2023* 3:00 p.m., FloHoops | | at Towson | L 55–65 | 4–8 | 21 – J. West Jr. | 11 – J. West Jr. | 2 – D. Smith | Towson Center (2,011) Towson, MD |
| December 30, 2023* 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Mobile | W 74–65 | 5–8 | 24 – B. Ireland | 8 – D. Smith | 2 – tied (4) | Stopher Gymnasium (450) Thibodaux, LA |
| Southland regular season |||||||||
| January 6, 2024 3:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Houston Christian | W 98–94 $^{OT}$ | 6–8 (1–0) | 23 – J. West Jr. | 10 – J. West Jr. | 7 – D. Smith | Sharp Gymnasium (509) Houston, TX |
| January 9, 2024 6:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | Southeastern Louisiana | W 66–61 | 7–8 (2–0) | 18 – D. Smith | 12 – B. Ireland | 7 – D. Smith | Stopher Gymnasium (500) Thibodaux, LA |
| January 13, 2024 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Lamar | L 76–78 $^{OT}$ | 7–9 (2–1) | 25 – R. Brown III | 9 – D. Smith | 8 – D. Smith | Stopher Gymnasium (800) Thibodaux, LA |
| January 15, 2024 6:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | New Orleans | W 78–75 | 8–9 (3–1) | 21 – J. West Jr. | 7 – J. West Jr. | 4 – J. West Jr. | Stopher Gymnasium (950) Thibodaux, LA |
| January 20, 2024 3:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | L 59–69 | 8–10 (3–2) | 20 – D. Smith | 10 – J. West Jr. | 2 – D. Smith | American Bank Center (1,532) Corpus Christi, TX |
| January 22, 2024 TBA, ESPN+ | | at Incarnate Word | W 78–74 $^{OT}$ | 9–10 (4–2) | 20 – 2 tied | 6 – 2 tied | 2 – 3 tied | McDermott Center (135) San Antonio, TX |
| January 27, 2024 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Texas A&M–Commerce | W 87–84 $^{OT}$ | 10–10 (5–2) | 29 – D. Smith | 11 – D. Smith | 3 – J. West Jr. | The Field House (351) Commerce, TX |
| February 3, 2024 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Houston Christian | W 83–73 | 11–10 (6–2) | 23 – B. Ireland | 5 – J. West Jr. | 4 – D. Smith | Stopher Gymnasium (555) Thibodaux, LA |
| February 5, 2024 6:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | Northwestern State | W 73–66 | 12–10 (7–2) | 17 – tied (2) | 8 – D. Smith | 5 – J. West Jr. | Stopher Gymnasium (625) Thibodaux, LA |
| February 10, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Lamar | L 56–75 | 12–11 (7–3) | 15 – D. Smith | 9 – D. Smith | 3 – D. Smith | Neches Arena (2,353) Beaumont, TX |
| February 12, 2024 6:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | W 67–63 | 13–11 (8–3) | 20 – D. Smith | 8 – J. West Jr. | 2 – D. Smith | Stopher Gymnasium (560) Thibodaux, LA |
| February 17, 2024 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | McNeese | L 47–74 | 13–12 (8–4) | 13 – D. Smith | 7 – J. West Jr. | 2 – tied (3) | Stopher Gymnasium (1,100) Thibodaux, LA |
| February 19, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at New Orleans | W 89–77 | 14–12 (9–4) | 24 – R. Brown III | 11 – D. Smith | 4 – D. Smith | Lakefront Arena (708) New Orleans, LA |
| February 24, 2024 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Texas A&M–Commerce | W 85–70 | 15–12 (10–4) | 19 – D. Smith | 6 – J. West Jr. | 6 – B. Ireland | Stopher Gymnasium (650) Thibodaux, LA |
| February 26, 2024 6:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | Incarnate Word | W 92–82 | 16–12 (11–4) | 28 – R. Brown III | 4 – B. Ireland | 7 – B. Ireland | Stopher Gymnasium (850) Thibodaux, LA |
| March 2, 2024 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at McNeese | L 62–83 | 16–13 (11–5) | 29 – D. Smith | 9 – D. Smith | 4 – D. Smith | The Legacy Center (4,211) Lake Charles, LA |
| March 4, 2024 6:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Northwestern State | W 68–62 | 17–13 (12–5) | 21 – R. Brown III | 9 – D. Smith | 4 – B. Ireland | Prather Coliseum (745) Natchitoches, LA |
| March 7, 2024 7:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Southeastern Louisiana | W 80–54 | 18–13 (13–5) | 22 – West Jr. | 11 – West Jr. | 6 – Ireland | Pride Roofing University Center (935) Hammond, LA |
| Southland tournament |||||||||
| March 11, 2023 7:30 p.m., ESPN+ | (3) | vs. (7) Texas A&M–Commerce Second round | W 72–51 | 19–13 | 18 – R. Brown III | 7 – tied (2) | 5 – Q. Strander | The Legacy Center (270) Lake Charles, LA |
| March 12, 2023 8:00 p.m., ESPN+ | (3) | vs. (2) Texas A&M–Corpus Christi Semifinals | W 81–73 $^{OT}$ | 20–13 | 22 – Smith | 9 – tied (2) | 5 – Gray Jr. | The Legacy Center (4,200) Lake Charles, LA |
| March 13, 2023 4:00 p.m., ESPN2 | (3) | at (1) McNeese Championship | L 76–92 | 20–14 | 33 – Smith | 6 – Collins | 5 – Brown III | The Legacy Center (4,200) Lake Charles, LA |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central. |||||||||
Sources:

## Conference awards and honors
### Weekly awards

Weekly honors :
| Honors | Player | Position | Date awarded |
| SLC Men's Basketball Player of the Week | Jamal West Jr. | F | November 13, 2023 |
| SLC Men's Basketball Player of the Week | Diante Smith | F | January 11, 2024 |
| SLC Men's Basketball Player of the Week | Diante Smith | F | January 29, 2024 |