Aug. 22, 2007
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - The Penn State women's basketball team announced its 2007-08 schedule today which includes 16 home games and an 18-game Big Ten Conference slate, up from 16 last season. The Lady Lions will kick off their season with the four-team WBCA Classic presented by Basketball Travelers, Friday, Nov. 9 - Sunday, Nov. 11. The Lady Lions will also host their second annual Think Pink Day on Sunday, Feb. 10 against Iowa. Last season's Think Pink Day raised more than $20,000 for breast cancer research.
"We have a challenging schedule, but the only way that you get a chance to be your best is by playing the best," Washington said. "The Big Ten Conference is always a tough test and this year will be no different with the veteran coaches and the influx of new coaches to the conference."
First-year head coach Coquese Washington and the Lady Lions open their season the WBCA Classic presented by Basketball Travelers. The WBCA Classic begins with the Charlotte 49ers of the Atlantic 10 taking on the Big East Conference's Pittsburgh Panthers at 5 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 9. The Lady Lions will face off against Pac 10 foe Arizona in the nightcap at 7:30 p.m. Saturday's opener features the Arizona Wildcats against Pitt at 4 p.m., before Penn State meets the 49ers at 6:30 p.m. The tournament's final day will see Arizona and Charlotte collide at 1:30 p.m., followed by a 4 p.m. match-up between the Lady Lions and Pitt.
Penn State's non-conference home schedule includes dates with Drexel (Sun., Nov. 25), Duke (Sun., Dec. 2), Georgetown (Sun., Dec. 9) and Mississippi (Thurs., Dec. 13). The Lady Lions will take to the road to face Xavier (Thurs., Nov. 15), South Carolina (Tues., Nov. 20), Old Dominion (Thurs., Nov. 29), Syracuse (Thurs., Dec. 6) and Bucknell (Sat., Dec. 15).
The Lady Lions will once again play their traditional Thursday-Sunday conference schedule with the exception of the season-opening Friday night game at Iowa, the Wednesday Big Ten home opener against Illinois, a Saturday game against Michigan State and a Monday evening tilt with Ohio State on Jan. 28. With the conference schedule expanding to 18 games, Penn State will host nine Big Ten opponents for the first time since 1993-94 when the Lady Lions posted a perfect 9-0 record. The Lady Lions will face every Big Ten foe twice with the exception of Purdue (home) and Indiana (away).
Penn State's home Big Ten schedule features four home games in January: Illinois (Wed., Jan. 2), Northwestern (Thurs., Jan. 10), Purdue (Thurs., Jan. 17) and Michigan (Sun. Jan. 20), as well as five home contests in February: Wisconsin (Sun., Feb. 3), Iowa (Sun., Feb. 10), Minnesota (Thurs., Feb. 14), Michigan State (Sun., Feb. 17) and Ohio State (Thurs., Feb. 28).
The Lady Lions' away Big Ten schedule has the team slated to play Iowa (Fri., Dec. 28), Michigan State (Sat., Jan. 5), Minnesota (Sun., Jan. 13), Wisconsin (Thurs., Jan. 24), Ohio State (Mon., Jan. 28), Michigan (Thurs., Feb. 7), Illinois (Thurs., Feb. 21), Northwestern (Sun., Feb. 24) and Indiana (Sun., Mar. 4).
The Big Ten Tournament will be played March 6-9 at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind.
Game times and the television schedule will be announced at a later date.
The Lady Lions return three starters, including two-time All-Big Ten honorable mention selection Kam Gissendanner (Clairton, Pa.), who is closing in on 1,000 points for her career, and 2006 All-Big Ten honorable mention choice Brianne O'Rourke (Pittsburgh, Pa.), who is just the 15th player in school history with 200 assists. Sophomore guard Tyra Grant (Youngstown, Ohio) also returns after leading the team in scoring as a rookie and finishing third on the school's single-season freshmen scoring charts.
| 2007-08 LADY LION SCHEDULE | |||
| Date | Opponent | ||
| OCTOBER | |||
| Wednesday, Oct. 31 | MILLERSVILLE | ||
| NOVEMBER | |||
| WBCA/Basketball Travelers Classic | |||
| Friday, Nov. 9 | ARIZONA | ||
| Saturday, Nov. 10 | UNC-CHARLOTTE | ||
| Sunday, Nov. 11 | PITTSBURGH | ||
| Thursday, Nov. 15 | at Xavier | ||
| Tuesday, Nov. 20 | at South Carolina | ||
| Sunday, Nov. 25 | DREXEL | ||
| Thursday, Nov. 29 | at Old Dominion | ||
| DECEMBER | |||
| Big Ten/ACC Challenge | |||
| Sunday, Dec. 2 | DUKE | ||
| Thursday, Dec. 6 | at Syracuse | ||
| Sunday, Dec. 9 | GEORGETOWN | ||
| Thursday, Dec. 13 | MISSISSIPPI | ||
| Saturday, Dec. 15 | at Bucknell | ||
| Friday, Dec. 28 | at Iowa * | ||
| JANUARY | |||
| Wednesday, Jan. 2 | ILLINOIS * | ||
| Saturday, Jan. 5 | at Michigan State * | ||
| Thursday, Jan. 10 | NORTHWESTERN * | ||
| Sunday, Jan. 13 | at Minnesota * | ||
| Thursday, Jan. 17 | PURDUE * | ||
| Sunday, Jan. 20 | MICHIGAN * | ||
| Thursday, Jan. 24 | at Wisconsin * | ||
| Monday, Jan. 28 | at Ohio State * | ||
| FEBRUARY | |||
| Sunday, Feb. 3 | WISCONSIN * | ||
| Thursday, Feb. 7 | at Michigan * | ||
| Sunday, Feb. 10 | IOWA * (THINK PINK DAY) | ||
| Thursday, Feb. 14 | MINNESOTA * | ||
| Sunday, Feb. 17 | MICHIGAN STATE * | ||
| Thursday, Feb. 21 | at Illinois * | ||
| Sunday, Feb. 24 | at Northwestern * | ||
| Thursday, Feb. 28 | OHIO STATE * | ||
| MARCH | |||
| Sunday, March 2 | at Indiana * | ||
| Thursday-Sunday, March 6-9 | Big Ten Tournament | ||
| Saturday-Tuesday, March 22-25 | NCAA First & Second Rounds | ||
| Saturday-Tuesday, March 29-April 1 | NCAA Regionals | ||
| APRIL | |||
| Sunday-Tuesday, April 6 & 8 | NCAA Final Four | ||
| BOLD CAPS indicates home game. | |||
| * - indicates Big Ten game. | |||
| All times are Eastern. Schedule subject to change. | |||
| Please visit www.GoPSUsports.com for up-to-date tip times. | |||