Providence women’s basketball to face UConn twice in arenas. Here’s the Big East schedule

Two big stages await the Providence women in their Big East meetings with a national power this season.

The Friars will be in Hartford and at home downtown while taking on Connecticut in two of their 20 league games, leaving their on-campus facilities for the bright lights.

Providence will visit the Huskies at XL Center on Dec. 29, its second conference game of the 2024-25 campaign. The Friars will miss out on a bus ride to Gampel Pavilion in Storrs and travel a little farther into the state capital. That comes after a Dec. 21 league opener at Seton Hall.

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The return match against UConn will be played Feb. 9 at Amica Mutual Pavilion, as Providence will leave Alumni Hall for one night. The Huskies have won 11 national titles in the last 30 years and feature a Player of the Year candidate in guard Paige Bueckers. UConn eliminated the Friars from the conference tournament quarterfinals last season, a comfortable 86-53 victory at Mohegan Sun after Providence knocked off Butler in its opener.

The Friars start their calendar 2025 with their league home opener against St. John’s on Jan. 1. That game against the Red Storm touches off a span in which Providence will play five of seven at home, including three straight with Xavier, Georgetown and Marquette. The Golden Eagles finished tied with St. John’s and Villanova at 11-7 in league play last season, four games behind Creighton and seven games behind the perfect Huskies.

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Three of the last five for the Friars will be on the road, including a March 1 finale at Georgetown. Providence will then head to Connecticut for the conference tournament and look for something more favorable than an 8-9 game in an 11-team field. The Friars finished tied with the Bulldogs, two games ahead of DePaul and six games ahead of the winless Musketeers in last season’s standings.

Providence closed 13-21 overall and 6-12 in league play in its debut season under coach Erin Batth. The Friars fell at home to Colgate in the WNIT and reloaded what should be a veteran roster. Kylee Sheppard, Grace Efosa, Nariah Scott, Marta Morales Romero, Brynn Farrell, Johnston native Sarah Bandoma, Audrey Koch, Olivia Olsen and Emily Archibald are the returners among the combined 10 graduate students or seniors suiting up.

Broadcast information and game times will be available at a later date. Visit friars.com for more information.

bkoch@providencejournal.com 

On X: @BillKoch25 

PC women’s basketball Big East schedule

Dec. 21 – at Seton Hall Dec. 29 – at Connecticut (XL Center) Jan. 1 – St. John’s Jan. 4 – Creighton Jan. 8 – at Butler Jan. 12 – at DePaul Jan. 15 – Xavier Jan. 18 – Georgetown Jan. 22 – Marquette Jan. 29 – at St. John’s Feb. 2 – at Creighton Feb. 6 – DePaul Feb. 9 – Connecticut (Amica Mutual Pavilion) Feb. 12 – at Xavier Feb. 16 – Seton Hall Feb. 19 – at Marquette Feb. 23 – Villanova March 1 – at Georgetown

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: PC women’s basketball schedule released, to face UConn twice in arenas