PISCATAWAY, N.J.  – The Rutgers women's basketball team will begin the 2006-07 campaign with a tune-up contest against the Houston Jaguars on Saturday, Nov. 4, at 2:00 p.m. at the Louis Brown Athletic Center (RAC).

Rutgers, selected second in the 2006-07 BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll, returns six letterwinners and welcomes a five-member recruiting class ranked first in the nation. Among the top returning players are Preseason All-BIG EAST team honorees Matee Ajavon (Newark, N.J.) and Essence Carson (Paterson, N.J.) and honorable mention sophomore Kia Vaughn (Bronx, N.Y.).

The Scarlet Knights have also been featured in the top 20 of several national polls. RU was picked ninth by both Lindy's and SportsMagazine.com, 11^th by CSTV.com, 14^th by Street & Smith's, 18^th by Athlon, 19^th by CBS Sportsline and 20^th in Liberman's Top 25.

Hall of Fame head coach C. Vivian Stringer and the women's basketball team will begin the 2006-07 regular-season slate on Sunday, Nov. 12, against Georgia at the State Farm Tip-off Classic. The game, scheduled for a 1:00 p.m. start, will be televised nationally on ESPN2.

Rutgers, ranked ninth in the WBCA/ESPN/USA Today Top 25 Poll at the end of the 2005-06 season, posted a 27-5 overall record and advanced to the regional semifinals of the 2006 NCAA Tournament.  The Scarlet Knights compiled a perfect 16-0 mark in BIG EAST Conference regular-season play to win their second straight outright BIG EAST regular-season crown.