Rutgers Women's Basketball Announces 2008-09 Schedule
Sep 02 | Women's Basketball
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - The 2008-09 Rutgers Women's Basketball schedule was released Tuesday evening by head coach C. Vivian Stringer.
The Scarlet Knights will play 14 NCAA Tournament qualifiers, including three squads who were the No. 1 seeds in last season's championship bracket.
"Our non-conference schedule, coupled with our BIG EAST slate, will serve us well for postseason play," Stringer said. "We are very excited about this schedule and understand the Scarlet Knights will be challenged on a game-by-game basis. I hope it will work to prepare our young team for the madness that begins in March."
Rutgers tips off the regular season at the Louis Brown Athletic Center on Friday, Nov. 14, entertaining Atlantic 10 foe Saint Joseph's. On Nov. 18, the Scarlet Knights host in-state rival Princeton before making a West Coast swing.
RU makes it first trek to Berkeley and Palo Alto since November 2002. The Scarlet Knights are at Cal on Friday, Nov. 21 and travel to Stanford on Sunday, Nov. 23.
Following a road contest at Temple on Monday, Dec. 1, Rutgers begins a stretch of five of six games at its home confines. Rutgers returns to Piscataway on Dec. 8 to host Georgia in the Jimmy V Classic. It marks the third straight year the Scarlet Knights have participated in the Classic to benefit cancer research.
The Scarlet Knights will play Prairie View A&M on Dec. 11 and Lafayette on Dec. 19, the first meeting with both schools. In between dates with the Lady Panthers and the Leopards is the lone away contest in the December stretch. Only 28 miles from the RAC, Rutgers will make its second consecutive appearance in the Maggie Dixon Classic on Sunday, Dec. 14. The Scarlet Knights face Army in the 12:00 p.m. game at Madison Square Garden, the first of a doubleheader. BIG EAST rival Connecticut and Penn State meet in the second contest.
The final non-conference game of the calendar year will be the third meeting with George Washington (Dec. 29) in a 13-month span. The Scarlet Knights defeated the Colonials twice last season, the first meeting in Washington, D.C. in November and the second coming in the Greensboro Regional semifinals in late March.
The first non-conference game of 2009 will be one of the most anticipated of the entire season, a marquee match-up with National Champion Tennessee. The Scarlet Knights and Lady Vols face off on Saturday, Jan. 3 at 2:00 p.m. at the RAC. The final non-conference game of the season will be the midst of league play. Rutgers heads to College Park, Md. for a Sunday afternoon meeting with Maryland on Feb. 15.
BIG EAST conference play starts on Jan. 6 at Syracuse. The Scarlet Knights will be battle-tested early with five of its first seven league games on the road.
The BIG EAST road portion of the schedule consists of Louisville (Jan. 11), Villanova (Jan. 14), DePaul (Jan. 24), Notre Dame (Jan. 27), Connecticut (Feb. 3), Seton Hall (Feb. 18) and St. John's (Feb. 28).
The home league line-up features meetings with Marquette (Jan. 18), West Virginia (Jan. 20), USF (Jan. 31), Georgetown (Feb. 7), Pittsburgh (Feb. 10), Providence (Feb. 21), Cincinnati (Feb. 24). Rutgers closes the conference slate with a Monday, March 2 home date with Connecticut.
The BIG EAST had eight teams participate in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year, tying the most bids in the 64-team field. The conference tournament will be contested March 6-10 at the XL Center in Hartford, Conn.
Two exhibition match-ups are scheduled for Nov. 4 and Nov. 9
"The league, once again, is extremely talented and offers an exciting challenge," Stringer added. "We will be tested early on in the BIG EAST portion of the schedule. It will be interesting to see how our young women grow as the season develops."
Rutgers recorded a 27-7 overall record while advancing to the NCAA regional final for the third time in the past four years. RU finished second in league play with a 14-2 ledger.
The Scarlet Knights return seven letterwinners and three starters to the floor in 2008-09. In addition, they welcome a highly touted five-member freshmen class and a local transfer to the squad. Stringer, beginning her 38th year on the sidelines overall and her 14th at Rutgers, boasts an 804-267 career record. Last season, she became just the third women and tenth coach overall in college basketball to reach the 800-win plateau.
Television broadcast information will be released at a later date. All game dates are subject to change.
RUTGERS WOMEN'S BASKETBALL 2008-09 SCHEDULE
| DATE | OPPONENT | LOCATION | TV | TIME/RESULT |
| Tuesday November 4 | OPERATION ATHLETE (EXH.) | RAC | 7:30 PM | |
| Sunday November 9 | THE FAMILY (EXH.) | RAC | 2:00 PM | |
| Friday November 14 | SAINT JOSEPH'S | RAC | TBA | |
| Tuesday November 18 | PRINCETON | RAC | 7:30 PM | |
| Friday November 21 | California | Berkeley, Calif. | TBA | |
| Sunday November 23 | Stanford | Palo Alto, Calif. | TBA | |
| Monday December 1 | Temple | Philadelphia, Pa. | TBA | |
| Monday December 8 | Jimmy V Classic vs. GEORGIA | RAC | 7:00 PM | |
| Thursday December 11 | PRAIRIE VIEW A&M | RAC | 7:30 PM | |
| Sunday December 14 | Maggie Dixon Classic vs. Army | New York, N.Y. | 12:00 PM | |
| Friday December 19 | LAFAYETTE | RAC | 7:30 PM | |
| Monday December 29 | GEORGE WASHINGTON | RAC | 7:30 PM | |
| Saturday January 3 | TENNESSEE | RAC | 2:00 PM | |
| Tuesday January 6 | Syracuse  | Syracuse, N.Y. | 7:00 PM | |
| Sunday January 11 | Louisville | Louisville, Ky. | 2:00 PM | |
| Wednesday January 14 | Villanova | Philadelphia, Pa. | TBA | |
| Sunday January 18 | MARQUETTE | RAC | 12:00 PM | |
| Tuesday January 20 | WEST VIRGINIA | RAC | 7:30 PM | |
| Saturday January 24 | DePaul | Chicago, Ill. | 8:00 PM | |
| Tuesday January 27 | Notre Dame | South Bend, Ind. | 8:00 PM | |
| Saturday January 31 | SOUTH FLORIDA | RAC | TBA | |
| Tuesday February 3 | Connecticut | Storrs, Conn. | 8:00 PM | |
| Saturday February 7 | GEORGETOWN | RAC | 2:00 PM | |
| Tuesday February 10 | PITTSBURGH | RAC | 8:00 PM | |
| Sunday February 15 | Maryland | College Park, Md. | 1:00 PM | |
| Wednesday February 18 | Seton Hall | South Orange, N.J. | 7:00 PM | |
| Saturday February 21 | PROVIDENCE | RAC | 2:00 PM | |
| Tuesday February 24 | CINCINNATI | RAC | 7:30 PM | |
| Saturday February 28 | St. John's | Queens, N.Y. | TBA | |
| Monday March 2 | CONNECTICUT | RAC | 7:30 PM | |
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Home games in CAPS | ||||
