The Northern Illinois University women’s basketball team released its 2022-23 schedule on Wednesday. The Huskies will play 13 regular season home games at the NIU Convocation Center this season, starting with the home opener against DePaul on Saturday, November 12.
“Our non-conference schedule presents a unique challenge with three teams that made last year’s NCAA Tournament,” said head coach Lisa Carlsen, who in entering her eighth season at NIU. “Hosting DePaul here at the Convocation Center for the first time in over 10 years will be a great opportunity for our fans to see us play one of the top teams in the area. This slate gives us a chance to be best prepared for the Mid-American Conference season starting in January.”
The Huskies will host Loras in an exhibition game on Saturday, October 29 at 1 p.m. at the NIU Convocation Center. Game times for the regular season games will be released at a later date.
The 2022-23 season opens on the road at Notre Dame on Monday, November 7. NIU will get to reunite with Hall of Famer Carol Owens, who played for the Huskies from 1985-90 and was also NIU head coach. Owens is now the associate head coach of the Fighting Irish, who went 24-9 last season and reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
NIU’s home opener against DePaul starts a three-game homestand for the Huskies. The Blue Demons last took on NIU in DeKalb in 2008. DePaul won 22 games last season and earned an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. NIU hosts Southern Indiana on Nov. 15, the first-ever meeting between the Huskies and Screaming Eagles, and Western Illinois on Nov. 17.
After a road game at Detroit Mercy on Nov. 22, NIU heads to Annapolis, Md. to play in a tournament hosted by Navy Nov. 26-27. The tournament field also includes Idaho and Richmond. NIU returns to the Midwest on Saturday, Dec. 3 for a road matchup at Eastern Illinois. The Huskies return to action after final exams on Monday, Dec. 12 for a game at Lindenwood in the first meeting between NIU and the Lions.
The non-conference slate wraps up with a home game against SIUE on Saturday, Dec. 17 and a matchup at IUPUI on Wednesday, Dec. 21. IUPUI won the Horizon League regular season and tournament titles in 2022 to reach the NCAA Tournament. NIU begins Mid-American Conference play when the calendar flips to January, starting with a road game at Central Michigan on Wednesday, Jan. 4. The Huskies return to the NIU Convocation Center on Saturday, Jan. 7 to face Toledo.
Following a game at Western Michigan on Jan. 11, NIU plays four of its next five games on the home floor. That stretch starts with matchups against Ohio (Jan. 14) and Miami (Jan. 18), then after a trip to Eastern Michigan on Jan. 21, Kent State (Jan. 25) and Bowling Green (Jan. 28) come to the Convocation Center.
NIU starts February with back-to-back road games at Ball State (Feb. 1) and defending MAC champions Buffalo (Feb. 4). The Huskies host Akron on Wednesday, Feb. 8 before going back on the road to face Ohio on Feb. 11 and Bowling Green on Feb. 15. On Saturday, Feb. 18 NIU hosts Ball State then goes out to face Miami on the 22nd. The Huskies wrap up the home portion of the regular season with back-to-back games against Central Michigan on Saturday, Feb. 25 and Eastern Michigan on Wednesday, March 1. NIU closes the regular season on the road at Kent State on March 4.
NIU returns three All-Conference selections from the 2021-22 season in First Team All-MAC forward A’Jah Davis and honorable mention guards Chelby Koker and Janae Poisson, who led the Huskies to a top-four finish in the MAC. Davis set NIU women’s basketball single-season rebounds record with 349 and double-doubles record with 24 in 29 games.
Women’s basketball season ticket pricing begins at just $35 for general admission seating and $50 for reserved seats. 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. 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, call the NIU Athletics Ticket Office at (815) 753-PACK or log on to NIUHuskies.com/Tickets.
