NEW ORLEANS – Part of the 2016-17 University of South Alabama women's basketball schedule was unveiled Thursday afternoon as the Sun Belt Conference released the 18-game league schedule for next season.
All 12 Sun Belt teams will have four two-game road trips during the upcoming conference season. The league office decided to utilize travel partners this season for the two-game road trips throughout the conference schedule to maximize rest, minimize travel times and limit missed class time for student-athletes. Each league program will have just one, single-game road trip all season against a rival opponent, which for the Jags will be in-state foe Troy.
All of the games for the South Alabama women will be held on Thursday and Saturday during the '16-17 season. Tip times for USA's conference games will be announced at a later date. The dates of play for the women will change for the 2017-18 season with games scheduled to be played on Saturdays and Mondays.
League play will open on Dec.29, but the Jags will not step into conference action until they host Troy (Dec. 31) two days later in a New Year's Eve tilt. Following the match up with the Trojans, USA will travel to Georgia Southern (Jan. 5) and Georgia State (Jan. 7), before returning home to take on Texas-Arlington (Jan. 12) and Texas State (Jan. 14).
South Alabama will then head back out on the road for a pair of games in Arkansas as they travel to take on Arkansas State (Jan.19) and Little Rock (Jan. 21). The next week, USA will return to Mobile to face Georgia State (Jan. 26) and Georgia Southern (Jan. 28).
The lone game the following week will be on Feb. 4 when the Jaguars travel to Troy. The Jags will stay on the road after their game against the Trojans as they travel to Louisiana-Lafayette on Feb. 9 and Louisiana-Monroe Feb. 11.
USA returns to its home floor for a pair of games against first-year league member Coastal Carolina (Feb. 16) and Appalachian State (Feb. 18), before closing out the month with road games at Texas State (Feb. 23) and at Texas-Arlington (Feb. 25).
South Alabama will conclude the regular season at the Mitchell Center when the Jaguars take on Little Rock (March 2) and Arkansas State (March 4).
In another change from the past three seasons, all 12 league members will travel to New Orleans, La., for the 2017 Sun Belt Conference Women's Basketball Championships held at Lakefront Arena for the fourth consecutive season.
South Alabama is coming off a 15-15 record this past season, which was a 10-win improvement from the season before and tied for eighth-best turnaround in the NCAA. Among the list of returning players on the Jaguar roster is the all-conference duo of juniors-to-be Chyna Ellis and Marquita Daniels. Both players earned third-team honors this season, while Ellis was also selected as the Sun Belt's Defensive Student-Athlete of the Year.
2016-17 Sun Belt Conference Women's Basketball Schedule
Thursday, December 29, 2016 – OPEN
Saturday, December 31, 2016 – Troy at South Alabama
Thursday, January 5, 2017 – South Alabama at Georgia Southern
Saturday, January 7, 2017 – South Alabama at Georgia State
Thursday, January 12, 2017 – Texas-Arlington at South Alabama
Saturday, January 14, 2017 – Texas State at South Alabama
Thursday, January 19, 2017 – South Alabama at Arkansas State
Saturday, January 21, 2017 – South Alabama at Little Rock
Thursday, January 26, 2017 – Georgia State at South Alabama
Saturday, January 28, 2017 – Georgia Southern at South Alabama
Thursday, February 2, 2017 – OPEN
Saturday, February 4, 2017 – South Alabama at Troy
Thursday, February 9, 2017 – South Alabama at Louisiana-Lafayette
Saturday, February 11, 2017 – South Alabama at Louisiana-Monroe
Thursday, February 16, 2017 – Coastal Carolina at South Alabama
Saturday, February 18, 2017 – Appalachian State at South Alabama
Thursday, February 23, 2017 – South Alabama at Texas State
Saturday, February 25, 2017 – South Alabama at Texas-Arlington
Thursday, March 2, 2017 –Little Rock at South Alabama
Saturday, March 4, 2017 – Arkansas State at South Alabama
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
—USA—
