University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Lady Eagle Basketball Releases 2009-10 Schedule
9/28/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Sept. 28, 2009
HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- Southern Miss Head Women's Basketball Coach Joye Lee-McNelis Monday released the 200-10 schedule that features seven teams - Georgia, Mississippi State, Charlotte, Arkansas-Little Rock, Louisiana Tech, UCF and SMU - that reached the postseason last season.
The schedule also includes 16 Conference USA games as well as non-conference tilts against South Alabama, Southeast Missouri State, Michigan, William Carey, Jackson State, Mississippi State, Charlotte, Belmont, UALR, Alabama and Louisiana Tech. Southern Miss plays host to the Lady Eagle Classic that includes Jackson State, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Georgia.
"We are excited about this year and the challenges we will face," McNelis said. "The non-conference schedule presents opportunities to take on some of the top teams in the country. Seven of those teams played in postseason including four in the NCAA Tournament. Those games will allow us the opportunity to see where we are and where we have to be in order to be competitive and compete for the conference championship."
The Lady Eagles open the regular season, Nov. 14, at home against South Alabama, before hitting the road for games at Southeast Missouri State (Nov. 16) and Michigan (Nov. 19). Southern Miss then hosts William Carey (Nov. 23) and the Lady Eagle Classic, Nov. 27-28.
Southern Miss begins the month of December at Mississippi State, and then returns to Reed Green Coliseum to host Alcorn State, before traveling to Charlotte and Belmont. The Lady Eagles also host UALR, before closing out the month of December at Alabama.
"I believe when you play the best it gives you the opportunity to be the best," said McNelis. "With that being said, I'm excited about what we will face and the opportunity we'll have. I look for Pauline Love, Tanesha Washington and Candace Rucker to lead and help direct this team into something that could be a very special year."
Conference USA again plays in two divisions, East and West. The East teams consist of Southern Miss, East Carolina, UAB, Memphis, UCF and Marshall, while the West has Tulane, Houston, Rice, Tulsa, UTEP and SMU. The Lady Eagles open the C-USA schedule on the road at East Carolina (Jan. 8), followed by a nationally televised game at Marshall (Jan. 10). Southern Miss returns home to host UAB (Jan. 15) and Memphis (Jan. 17), before traveling to UCF (Jan. 21) and Tulane (Jan. 23).
Rounding out the remaining C-USA has the Lady Eagles hosting UTEP (Jan. 30), East Carolina (Feb. 4) and Marshall (Feb. 6). Southern Miss has a return trip to Memphis (Feb. 12) and UAB (Feb. 14) before hosting Houston (Feb. 18) and Rice (Feb. 20). The Lady Eagles concludes play with a game at Tulsa (Feb. 25) and SMU (Feb. 27) before closing out the regular season at home against UCF (Mar. 3).
The complete schedule follows: Nov. 14, South Alabama; 16, at Southeast Missouri State; 19, at Michigan; 23, William Carey; 27-28, Lady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic; Dec. 2, at Mississippi State; 4, Alcorn State; 12, at Charlotte; 16, at Belmont; 22, Arkansas-Little Rock; 30, at Alabama; Jan. 3, Louisiana Tech; 8, at East Carolina; 10, at Marshall; 15, UAB, 17, Memphis; 21, at UCF; 23, at Tulane; 30, UTEP; Feb. 4, East Carolina; 6, Marshall; 12, at Memphis; 14, at UAB; 18, Houston; 20, Rice; 25, at Tulsa; 27, at SMU; Mar. 3, UCF; 8-12, Conference USA Championship in Tulsa, Okla.
