Oct. 28, 2010

Schedule in PDF Format | Opponent Capsules in PDF Format

COLUMBIA, S.C. – University of South Carolina women’s basketball head coach Dawn Staley announced today a 29-game schedule for 2010-11 that includes 20 games against teams that participated in either the NCAA Tournament or Women’s NIT last season. Among that group are five teams that advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16 or better, including a non-conference matchup at Stanford. South Carolina will host 17 games at Colonial Life Arena, including 10 against 2010 postseason participants.

“We are looking forward to the challenging schedule ahead of us,” Staley said. “It will certainly prepare us for conference play and put us in a position to reach our goal of playing into the postseason.”

The Gamecocks open the regular season with three home games, beginning with a Nov. 12 contest against NCAA Sweet 16 participant Xavier. A Monday night matchup with Illinois kicks off the next week, and archrival Clemson rounds out the stretch on Nov. 18. Other non-conference opponents visiting Colonial Life Arena this season include Charleston Southern, Savannah State, NCAA Tournament participant NC State, Butler, Presbyterian and South Carolina State.

South Carolina will play just four non-conference games outside the friendly confines of Colonial Life Arena as the Gamecocks travel to Penn State on Nov. 21 and follow that with an extended trip to California where they will take on Stanford and UC Davis just after Thanksgiving. South Carolina returns to the Carolinas Challenge in Myrtle Beach, facing host North Carolina on Dec. 19.

A Jan. 2 trip to SEC rival Georgia rings in the New Year for the Gamecocks and opens a stretch of eight games against seven 2010 postseason teams, including four against teams that advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16. While the road trip to Athens kicks off the set, the Bulldogs’ return to trip to Columbia on Jan. 27 closes it. In between, South Carolina will host LSU (NCAA participant), Florida (WNIT participant), Tennessee (NCAA Sweet 16) and Alabama. The Gamecocks head to Lexington to face a Kentucky team that reached the NCAA Elite 8 last season and press on to Ole Miss, which played in the WNIT.

South Carolina will have to make some noise on the road in the final weeks of the season, playing five of its final eight games away from Colonial Life Arena. While the Gamecocks will travel to Auburn, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Tennessee and LSU, they will host Kentucky, Auburn and Vanderbilt. The matchup against the Commodores will be the final game of the season, prior to which South Carolina will honor its three seniors – Samone Kennedy, Jewel May and Valerie Nainima.

Of the Gamecocks’ 29 regular-season games this season, 12 will be televised, including a Feb. 6 appearance on ESPNU. South Carolina will play four non-conference games on Fox Sports Carolinas; and Fox Sports South, Fox Sports Southwest and Sun Sports will air four Gamecock home SEC contests. One league road game will air on the SEC Network and, one will air on Charter Sports Southeast.

Season tickets are on sale now, starting at $50 for general admission or $100 for the Family Four pack, which is less than $2 per game. Tickets are available by calling 1-800-4SC-FANS or at www.GamecocksOnline.com.