The Northern Illinois University women’s basketball team released its 2023-24 schedule on Wednesday. The Huskies will play 13 games at the NIU Convocation Center this season with the home opener on Tuesday, Nov. 21 against Lindenwood. NIU will host Ripon College for an exhibition game on Saturday, Nov. 4. Game times will be announced at a later date.
“The non-conference slate this season is a good balance of long-standing in-state and regional rivals and new faces that will help us prepare for Mid-American Conference play,” said head coach Lisa Carlsen, who is entering her ninth season at the helm of the Huskies. “The MAC-SBC Challenge is an exciting development to see how we stack up against another great women’s basketball league. Every year, the MAC proves to be one of the most competitive mid-major leagues in the nation and we’ll be ready for league play come January.”
NIU opens the 2023-24 season on the road at Arkansas State on Thursday, Nov. 9 in the first round of the MAC-SBC Challenge. The Red Wolves won two games at the Sun Belt Conference Tournament last season to reach the quarterfinals as an 11-seed. This will be the second meeting all time between NIU and Arkansas State, with the first being played in DeKalb in 1995.
The three-game road swing to start the season continues at Western Illinois on Sunday, Nov. 12 and at Southern Indiana on Thursday, Nov. 16. Last season NIU made a single-game program record 21 three-pointers in a 100-61 win over the Leathernecks last season at the NIU Convocation Center.
NIU’s home opener will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 21 when the Huskies welcome Lindenwood to the Convocation Center. The Huskies won the first meeting between the two teams last season 67-56 at Lindenwood. NIU then heads to Puerto Rico for two games in the November Clasico. On Friday, Nov. 24 the Huskies will take on Radford in the first meeting between the two teams. The following day NIU will face Indiana State for the first time since 2012.
The Huskies close out a stretch of four consecutive games away from home with matchups at Wisconsin on November 29 and at SIUE on December 3. NIU closes its non-conference slate with three straight games at the NIU Convocation Center. The Huskies start the homestand on Sunday, Dec. 10 against Detroit Mercy. Last season NIU won at Detroit Mercy 65-63 on a buzzer beater. Eastern Illinois comes to DeKalb on Dec. 18. The Huskies have won six of the last seven meetings in the series after last year’s 71-69 win in Charleston. Eastern Illinois went 21-8 last season with a 14-4 mark in the Ohio Valley. NIU rounds out the homestand on Saturday, Dec. 30 against Concordia Chicago in the first regular season meeting between the Huskies and Cougars in over 40 years.
When the calendar flips to 2024, NIU opens Mid-American Conference play with four of its first six games in DeKalb. The Huskies host Eastern Michigan (Jan. 3) and Miami (Jan. 6) before road matchups at Ohio and Kent State. NIU is home to face Buffalo on Jan. 17 and Central Michigan on Jan. 20 before taking on the defending MAC champions Toledo on Jan. 24 at Toledo. The month of January wraps up with a home game against Akron on Jan. 27 and a game at Bowling Green on Jan. 31.
NIU opens a three-game homestand on Feb. 7 against Ball State. The second game of the MAC-SBC Challenge will be on Saturday, Feb. 10 with a matchup against Western Michigan on Feb. 14 closing the homestand. The Huskies close the regular season with five of the last seven games on the road, starting with games at Eastern Michigan (Feb. 17) and Buffalo (Feb. 21). NIU closes out its home slate with matchups against Bowling Green on Feb. 24 and Toledo on Feb. 28.
The Huskies play three straight road games in March starting with a matchup at Akron on March 2. The final week of the regular season sees NIU go to Miami on March 6 and Western Michigan on March 9.
The women’s basketball season ticket pricing starts at just $35 for general admission seats and $50 for reserved tickets. NIU faculty and staff, members of the NIU Alumni Association or Varsity Club and senior citizens can purchase women’s basketball season tickets for $40.
NIU women’s basketball returns four starters from last season’s team including two-time All-MAC guard Chelby Koker (Racine, Wis./Shoreland Lutheran). The fifth-year guard is the Huskies’ top returning scorer after averaging 15.4 points per game in the 2022-23 campaign while leading the team in assists and three-point field goal percentage. NIU was 9-4 at the Convocation Center last season with wins over DePaul and the reigning MAC champions Toledo. The Huskies were also the only team in the MAC last year with wins over the top-three teams in the final standings – Toledo, Ball State and Bowling Green.
Premium courtside seats are also available for both men’s and women’s basketball, putting fans close to the action for an unmatched game experience. Courtside seats to women’s basketball are $200 each which includes the cost of a season ticket plus a $150 per seat license. For more information on courtside seats, call the NIU Athletics Ticket Office at 815-753-PACK (7225).
NIU is also offering a variety of Season Ticket Combo packages. Season Ticket Combos for Men’s and Women’s Basketball, as well as Women’s Basketball and Volleyball, are also available. For more information, log on to NIUHuskies.com/tickets or call the NIU Athletics Ticket Office.