ETSU women’s basketball to open season at Kentucky

Published 4:29 pm Thursday, June 29, 2023

JOHNSON CITY – The ETSU women’s basketball team will open the 2023-24 season in the same city it ended last year’s historical run, as the Buccaneers will play their season opener at the University of Kentucky.

As both schools announced the non-conference game on Thursday, ETSU and Kentucky will play on Tuesday, Nov. 7. Due to renovations taking place inside Memorial Coliseum, the game will either be played in Rupp Arena or at Transylvania University.

“We are excited to announce our season opener against the University of Kentucky,” said head coach Brenda Mock. “As we continue to move our program forward on and off the court, competing against high-level programs in our non-conference slate will provide the challenges that we need to prepare us for the Southern Conference season. We look forward to releasing the remainder of our schedule soon and welcoming Buccaneer fans back to Brooks Gymnasium for another great season of women’s basketball action. We are excited about our season ticket sales and encourage those who have not purchased tickets to go online or contact our ticket office soon!”

This will mark the fourth all-time meeting between the two programs and the first since Dec. 15, 2013. ETSU defeated Kentucky inside Memorial Coliseum, 59-50, on Dec. 12, 2008.

ETSU will be looking to knock off a Power-5 program for the third time in the last five seasons as the Bucs defeated Vanderbilt last season and knocked off Wake Forest in 2019-20.

Kentucky has been to 17 NCAA Tournaments as it gears up for its 50th season, while the Wildcats won the 2022 SEC Tournament title.

The Bucs are coming off a historical season a year ago where the Blue & Gold won a school-record 25 games en route to posting the largest turnaround in NCAA Division I basketball last season. ETSU, who finished third in the Women’s Basketball Invitational, improved its win total by 19 games from the 2021-22 season.