Mike McConathy era (1999–2022) Mike McConathy was hired in 1999. In his first season, the team went 17–13 and finished fourth in the Southland Conference. In 2001, McConathy led the Demons to their first ever
NCAA tournament appearance. The Demons won the first
play in game after the NCAA expanded the men's tournament from 64 to 65 teams. The Demons defeated
Winthrop in that game, before losing to
Illinois in the next round. In 2005, the Demons finished the season 21–12, 13–3 to win the Southland Conference regular season championship. However, the Demons 10-game winning streak was stopped by
Southeastern Louisiana in the Southland tournament championship. The Demons would repeat as Southland regular season champions the following year. This time, they defeated Sam Houston State in the Southland tournament championship to earn their second appearance in the
NCAA tournament. In the NCAA tournament as a No. 14 seed, the Demons earned one of the biggest upsets in the tournament by beating No. 3-ranked
Iowa 64–63 in the first round. Jermaine Wallace hit a three-pointer with less than a second left in the game to give the Demons the victory, their second in NCAA history. The Demons advanced to the second round where they lost to
West Virginia 67–54. After some disappointing seasons where they only finished above .500 twice, the Demons returned to prominence in the
2012–13 season when they went 23–9, 15–3 in Southland play to finish in second place. The Demons defeated
Stephen F. Austin to win the
Southland tournament championship and earn their third trip to the NCAA tournament. However, they lost to
Florida in the round of 64 (then called the second round, which was before 2011 and since 2016 known as the first round). ==Postseason appearances==