The UConn women won’t have to wait until March to get a crack at South Carolina, the team that ended the Huskies’ designs on a repeat national championship and an undefeated season at the Final Four last season.
The Gamecocks will be in Connecticut to play UConn at Mohegan Sun on Nov. 24 in the Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase at 8 p.m., the headliner of the regular season slate for the Huskies. UConn and South Carolina have met 17 times since 2008, UConn winning 11, and nearly always they have met with the stakes high. South Carolina defeated UConn for the national championship in 2022, the Huskies turned the tables in the NCAA final in 2025 to win the program’s 12th title.
On a long winning streak, UConn was stunned in the NCAA semifinal in Phoenix last April 3, 62-48, after which the coaches, Geno Auriemma and Dawn Staley, got into a postgame argument. Things later calmed down between them, but this will obviously be a prominent storyline when they meet again. Both schools figure to be at the top of the preseason rankings when they play in the second game of the doubleheader on Nov. 24, with St. John’s to play defending national champ UCLA at 5 p.m.
UConn will have a strong cast of returning players, led by national player of the year Sarah Strong, KK Arnold, Ashlynn Shade and Blanca Quinonez from last year’s regular rotation, and several highly-touted newcomers. Coach Geno Auriemma has assembled a tough nonconference schedule, filled with opponents from the power conferences. Aside from South Carolina, the Huskies play four Big Ten opponents, at Michigan (Nov. 5) and Ohio State (Nov. 12), a home game vs. Iowa Nov. 8 at Gampel Pavilion and Maryland Dec. 5 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
They play three from the ACC, at Louisville (Nov. 15), vs. Duke (Nov. 28) at Boston’s TD Garden and at Notre Dame Dec. 9. The Huskies play Tennessee Dec. 12 in Hartford, and LSU in Nashville (Dec. 20) in addition to South Carolina from the SEC.
After opening against Cornell, the UConn women face three consecutive Big Ten opponents beginning at Syla Swords and Michigan on Nov. 5. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
The Huskies have preseason tuneups vs. Syracuse at Mohegan Sun, Texas in Hartford and Army at Gampel Pavilion during October, before starting the regular season vs. Cornell Nov. 2 at PeoplesBank Arena.
UConn plays its first Big East game vs. Seton Hall on Nov. 20 in Hartford, and Creighton on Dec. 16. After Dec. 23, it’s all Big East. The Huskies have won the conference regular season and tournament titles each year since leaving the AAC in 2020.
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UConn women’s schedule
Start times and TV information TBA:
x-Oct. 12: Syracuse at Mohegan Sun Arena
x- Oct. 19: Texas at PeoplesBank Arena
x-Oct. 25: Army at Gampel Pavilion.
Nov. 2: Cornell at PBA
Nov. 5: at Michigan
Nov. 8: Iowa at GP
Nov. 12: at Ohio State
Nov. 15: at Louisville
Nov. 20: Seton Hall at PBA
Nov. 24: South Carolina at Mohegan Sun
Nov. 28: Duke at TD Garden/Boston
Dec. 2: UNLV at GP
Dec. 5: Maryland at Barclays Center
Dec. 9: at Notre Dame
Dec. 12: Tennessee at PBA
Dec. 16: Creighton at GP
Dec. 20: LSU at Nashville
Dec. 23: at Villanova
Dec. 31: at Xavier
Jan. 3: at DePaul
Jan. 7: vs. Georgetown at PBA
Jan. 10: at Creighton
Jan. 13: Marquette at PBA
Jan. 18: at Seton Hall
Jan. 24: at St. John’s at Madison Square Garden
Jan. 28: DePaul at GP
Jan. 31: Providence at PBA
Feb. 4: at Butler
Feb. 7: at Marquette
Feb. 10: Villanova at GP
Feb. 13: Xavier at GP
Feb. 18: at Georgetown
Feb. 21: vs. St. John’s at PBA
Feb. 25: at Providence
Feb. 28: vs. Butler at GP
March 5-8: Big East Tournament at Mohegan Sun
March 14: NCAA Selection
x-preseason game