After a very unique, challenging basketball season in 2020-21, the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs and Lady Techsters both hope this upcoming year will have more of a traditional look and feel to it.
The first sign that this coming fall may be more “normal” came when the Conference USA office released the 18-game league schedule late last week for both the men’s and women’s basketball teams.
After a season that for the first time ever saw “weekend series” where C-USA teams would play two-game series with back-to-back days of games against the same opponent at the same location, this year’s league slate returns to the traditional Thursday-Saturday format of past years.
Although Conference USA will retain an East and a West Division – something that was new to basketball last year – teams will not play back-to-back days, something dictated by COVID-19 concerns last season.
“We are excited about the 2021-2022 CUSA schedule and the return to a more traditional format this season,” said Lady Techster head coach Brooke Stoehr. “The opportunity to compete for a Western Division championship as well as the return to a normal weekend setup is appealing.
“The league has continued to keep the safety and welfare of our students and staffs at the forefront of the scheduling conversation while trying to create the most competitively equitable format for all and achieving our goal of having multiple teams in postseason play.”
The Bulldogs and the Lady Techsters schedules will mirror one another this season. When the men are at home against one C-USA opponent, the women will be on the road against the same foe … and vice versa.
Each C-USA school will play home-and-homes against divisional foes – Tech is in the West Division and will play twice against Southern Miss, UAB, Rice, North Texas, UTEP and UTSA – and will play six of the seven East Division schools once. The Bulldogs will be on the road against FIU, Florida Atlantic and Charlotte while hosting Marshall, WKU and Old Dominion. The women will do the opposite. Neither program will face Middle Tennessee in the regular season.
Non-conference schedules will be released later this summer.
Season tickets are on sale for both the Bulldogs and Lady Techsters. Fans can purchase their season tickets at https://am.ticketmaster.com/latech/buy. Season ticket prices will remain the same for the upcoming year as fans are encouraged to take advantage of the combo season ticket packages that include both men’s and women’s games.
Louisiana Tech officials anticipate game days for the 2021-22 basketball season will see the Thomas Assembly Center return to a more traditional state as the University plans to operate the venues as close to normal as possible while following state health guidelines.
2021-22 LA Tech Basketball Conference USA Schedule
Dec. 30 WBB at Marshall; MBB vs. Marshall
Jan. 1 WBB at WKU, MBB vs. WKU
Jan. 6 WBB vs. UTEP, MBB at UTEP
Jan. 8 WBB vs. UTSA, MBB at UTSA
Jan. 13 WBB at Southern Miss, MBB vs. Southern Miss
Jan. 16 WBB vs. Southern Miss, MBB at Southern Miss
Jan. 22 WBB at UAB, MBB vs. UAB
Jan. 27 WBB at Rice, MBB vs. Rice
Jan. 29 WBB at North Texas, MBB vs. North Texas
Feb. 3 WBB vs. Florida Atlantic, MBB at Florida Atlantic
Feb. 5 WBB vs. FIU, MBB at FIU
Feb. 10 WBB vs. Charlotte, MBB at Charlotte
Feb. 17 WBB at UTEP, MBB vs. UTEP
Feb. 19 WBB at UTSA, MBB vs. UTSA
Feb. 24 WBB vs Rice, MBB at Rice
Feb. 26 WBB vs North Texas, MBB at North Texas
March 2 WBB at Old Dominion, MBB vs. Old Dominion
March 5 WBB vs. UAB, MBB at UAB
