Coming off their tenth consecutive postseason appearance and fourth straight 20-win season, the St. John’s women’s basketball team released the schedule for their upcoming 2017-2018 campaign, one that will see the Red Storm play 15 games in Queens, nine of which will be against conference opponents.
The year kicks off November 10 with back-to-back home contests with St. Francis Brooklyn and William and Mary. A week after their game against the Tribe, St. John’s will travel to Estero, Fl. to compete in the Gulf Coast Showcase over Thanksgiving break. Western Michigan, the Red Storm’s first opponent in the set of neutral games, finished 19-13 last season, losing to Northern Illinois in the MAC semifinals.
The team’s first true road games will commence on November 30 with a trip to Albany, followed by a trip back to Florida four days later to play the Hurricanes of Miami, who finished 24-9 last year and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Don't miss any of the action this year – get your #SJUWBB tickets now! https://t.co/Ewq2mhnpte pic.twitter.com/81pnc4qg2R
— St. John's WBB (@StJohnsWBB) September 18, 2017
Four straight home contests against non-conference opponents will lead into Big East play beginning December 28 on the road versus Marquette. The first of those games will be against James Madison, a team that finished 26-9 last year and the WNIT Round of 16.
The team’s first conference home game will come in a matchup with Providence on January 2, followed by Creighton three days later. The Red Storm will then split the remaining 14 games between Carnesecca Arena and opposing gyms, with the regular season coming to an end on February 25 at home against the Golden Eagles.
The first round of the Big East Tournament will kick off on March 3. Last year, the Red Storm lost to DePaul in the tournament before defeating Sacred Heart and Harvard in the WNIT before falling to WNIT champion Michigan.
Seven of the nine non-conference teams St. John’s will play finished last season with at least 20 wins, while two teams made the NCAA Tournament.
According to RedStormSports.com, St. John’s will host Kansas for the first time in 24 years. The last time the two teams played one another, 2015 at Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Aliyyah Handford scored 33 points to lead the Red Storm to an 86-71 win.
Joe Tartamella’s team will have all six non-conference games broadcast on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app beginning with the season-opener against St. Francis Brooklyn. The Johnnies will also have three games broadcast on national television on Fox Sports 2, while 15 other Big East games will be streamed live on the Big East Mobile Network.
