WBB Releases Coming Season’s Non-Conference Schedule
The University of Connecticut’s women’s basketball program unveiled its 2022-23 non-conference slate on Wednesday. Times and venues will be announced at a later date…
Nov. 6: Kutztown (exhibition)
The Huskies will face a Bears team that’s coming off an appearance in the national Division II tournament in an exhibition match. Kutztown opened last season against Monmouth in similar fashion.
Nov. 10: Northeastern
UConn has a one-game contract with Boston-based Northeastern, which partook in last season’s Women’s Basketball Invitational. Also carrying a Huskies moniker, Northeastern is led by second-year head coach and former Duke representative Bridgette Mitchell.
Nov. 14: Texas
Texas is back…in Connecticut for the first time since December 2016. A matchup with the Longhorns, ranked sixth in the final AP poll (their best showing since 2003) has been delayed by two years due to public health issues and is part of a home-and-home that will send UConn to Austin during the 2023-24 season. Texas, fresh off consecutive Elite Eight showings for the first time since 1986-90, has yet to face UConn at one of their official homes, each of its three visits to the Constitution State coming in either Uncasville or Bridgeport (including the 2016 regional final at the latter).
Nov. 20: North Carolina State
Those still not over the thrilling Elite Eight showdown between the Huskies and Wolfpack won’t have to wait long for a rematch. The Wolfpack will be looking to build on the momentum of arguably the most prolific season in program history, likely remembering that the Huskies denied them their first Final Four appearance since 1998 despite a program-record 32 wins. UConn will make the return trip to Raleigh in 2023-24.
Nov. 25/27: Phil Knight Legacy (@ Portland, OR) (vs. Duke/Iowa/Oregon State)
Pacific Northwest basketball fans will have a lot to be thankful for on this holiday weekend, as four historic programs will do battle in PDX to honor the eponymous businessman and co-founder of Nike. Ultimate gratitude could be expressed if the Oregon public is blessed with a battle between the Huskies and Hawkeyes, which could pit nationally renowned point guards Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark against one another. Bueckers and the Huskies previously emerged victorious in their prior meeting, a 92-72 triumph in the 2021 regional semifinals.
Dec. 4: @ Notre Dame
Though their Big East camaraderie ended after the 2012-13 season, the Huskies and Fighting Irish can’t quit each other, as they’ll face off as non-conference foes for the 12th time (including postseason p;ay) since the conference schism. UConn will make its first visit to South Bend since December 2018, when a dominant shooting performance from Christyn Williams paced an 89-71 victory. The Irish made their return to postseason affairs last season, reaching the Sweet 16 round under the watch of second-year head coach Niele Ivey. This is the second of a four-game regular season set between UConn and Notre Dame with the Huskies taking a 73-54 decision in Storrs last holiday season.
Dec. 8: Princeton
Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma has watched several of his proteges follow in his footsteps and later return to Connecticut as an opponent. That trend will continue upon the first-ever meeting between UConn and Princeton, which is led by third-year head coach and UConn alumna Carla Berube. The Tigers are undefeated in Ivy League play since Berube, formerly the long-tenured boss at Division III Tufts, took over in 2019.
Dec. 11: @ Maryland
The Huskies will make their first visit to College Park since an 87-81 triumph in December 2016. It’ll be the eighth all-time meeting between the accomplished program, the previous seven each won by the Huskies, including a showdown in the 2015 Final Four in Tampa. Maryland finished 13th in the final AP poll last season.
Dec. 18: vs. Florida State (@ Uncasville, CT)
UConn will face the Seminoles as part of the Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase at Mohegan Sun. It’ll be the second time they’ve done battle with FSU in Uncasville, as the Huskies previously prevailed in a 73-49 victory in December 2015. It’ll be a homecoming for new Seminoles head coach Brooke Wyckoff, a member of the original Connecticut Sun team that debuted at Mohegan in 2003.
Feb. 5: South Carolina
The Huskies held of Dawn Staley’s Columbia revolution as long as they could, but the Gamecocks have finally broken through, taking three of the last four matchups between the two sides. That includes last season’s national title game, which prominently featured the efforts of returnees like Aliyah Boston and Zia Cooke. South Carolina also took home a 73-57 decision in the inaugural women’s edition of the Battle 4 Atlantis in The Bahamas last November. The two sides were set to do battle in Columbia last winter but that matchup was pushed to the 2024-25 season due to public health-induced scheduling issues.
TBD: @ Tennessee
The renewed non-conference rivalry between the Huskies and Volunteers will continue in Knoxville on a date to be determined. UConn has won each of the last three meetings since the teams began to meet annually in 2020, including a 75-56 decision in Storrs anchored by 25
points from Azzi Fudd. The Huskies hold a 16-9 advantage in the all-time series including a 5-2 mark in NCAA Tournament play.
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
