Women’s Basketball 23-24 Big Ten Conference Opponents

Women’s Basketball 23-24 Big Ten Conference Opponents

The Illinois Lady Illini is coming off of one the best seasons in program history. The 22-23 season was ripe with milestones not hit in Champaign in a long time. Illinois won 20 games (22-11) for the first time since the 2007-08 season. Its appearance in the NCAA tournament was its first since the 2002-03 season. The Illini cracked the top 25 for the first time since 2000-2001. Makira Cook and Genesis Bryant led the Lady Illini in scoring, while Kendall Bostic led the way in rebounds. All starters return for what should be a better season than 22-23. Second-year head coach Shauna Green looks to build off of a solid first year in Champaign. Her first year was one of the best turnarounds in the nation. The Lady Illini won 15 more games in 22-23 than in 21-22.

Format of the Big Ten Schedule.

We now know the Big Ten Schedule for Illinois. All fourteen teams in the conference play an 18-game schedule. Illinois plays two games against five teams — home and away — and a single game against the other eight teams, one home and one away. This is what the Lady Illini play rival Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Nebraska, and interstate rival Northwestern twice. Minnesota, Ohio State, Rutgers, and Wisconsin are its single-home games. Iowa and Caitlin Clark host Illinois, along with Michigan State, Purdue, and Penn State.

Illinois has the Hoosiers circled on its schedule after losing twice to IU. Also, its matchup against Iowa should be intriguing after winning in Iowa City last year. Clark and the Lady Hawkeyes want their win back in Champaign.

The Buzz is palpable.

There is a lot of excitement around the program off of the success of last season. The Lady Illini had its fifth-best home attendance ever, drawing over 50,000 home fans for the season. Season ticket packages (new and renewals) have been on sale since June 5th. Minneapolis, Minnesota, hosts the Big Ten tournament once again after hosting for the first time last season.