Carlene Mitchell will get a good look at how basketball is played on the West Coast as her UCSB women’s squad will play three West Coast Conference teams, two teams from the Pacific 12 and two teams from the Pacific Northwest during its nonconference season.
Mitchell, who came to UCSB from Rutgers, will make her Gaucho coaching debut in an exhibition against NAIA power Vanguard on Nov. 1. The season officially opens with road games at Seattle on Nov. 11 and at Portland State on Nov. 13.
Mitchell’s Gauchos make their regular season home debut on Nov. 17 against St. Mary’s. Two nights later they host another WCC opponent, Loyola Marymount. Pac-12 team Washington caps the first homestand on Nov. 23.
UCSB also will host WCC member Pepperdine on Dec. 16. Former Santa Barbara High star Tess Emerson plays for the Waves.
The Gauchos will make nonconference road trips to Northern Colorado, USC, Texas-El Paso and New Mexico State. The USC game on Dec. 13 will be a rematch of last season’s Women’s National Invitational Tournament game that the Trojans won, 67-64, at the Galen Center.
“Road games are always tough, whether they are in conference or not,” Mitchell said. “Playing these quality teams at their house will be a good early test for our team.”
UCSB opens Big West play on Dec. 31 with a road game at Cal Poly, the team the Gauchos defeated in the regular-season finale last year to capture a share of the conference crown. The Gauchos’ first conference home series is Jan. 12 and 14 against UC Irvine and UC Riverside.
The Gauchos, coming off a Big West regular-season title from last season, return much of their team including All-Big West First Team pick Emilie Johnson, Honorable Mention selection Sweets Underwood, All-Freshman Team choice Nicole Nesbit, as well as starters Kelsey Adrian and Angelei Aguirre.
“We have a veteran team and with the addition of three newcomers, we’re excited about this season,” Mitchell said. “This is a good schedule for us and I know this team cannot wait to take the floor in November.”
