PURCHASE SEASON TICKETS HERE
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (Aug. 16, 2023) – After a record-breaking season that saw the squad advance to its second-straight Big Sky Conference title game, the Northern Arizona University women's basketball team officially turns the page with the announcement of the 2023-24 schedule.
With the unveiling, season tickets for all 13 home games are now on sale
HERE.
The Lumberjacks play in 31 regular season games leading up to the conference championships from March 9-13 in Boise, Idaho. The non-conference schedule includes 13 contests, four of which are at home, and the 'Jacks will play each Big Sky opponent twice, swapping between home and away.
The 2023-24 schedule is loaded with talented competition, as five opponents advanced to the NCAA Tournament a season ago and three made WNIT appearances.
"We are so excited for this upcoming season's schedule. I'm a firm believer that the more difficult our non-conference schedule is, the better prepared it makes us for Big Sky Conference play," said seventh year head coach Loree Payne. "We have a great balance of home and away games slated against top notch opponents."
The season begins with a pair of road Pac-12 games against Oregon (Nov. 6) and Arizona (Nov. 10). Both squads advanced to postseason tournaments last season, as Oregon fell in the Great 8 of the WNIT and the Wildcats advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Lumberjacks also earned a WNIT bid last season and will play the Ducks for the first time since 2014.
Northern Arizona opens the home slate on Nov. 15 against NAIA Benedictine Mesa before hitting the road again. NAU plays UC San Diego on Sunday, Nov. 19 where it will look to top the Tritons for the fourth-straight meeting.
Following the Thanksgiving holiday, the Jacks head to Las Vegas, Nev., for the Las Vegas Holiday Classic multi-team event. NAU opens play against another NCAA Tournament selection in Portland on Nov. 24 before turning around to play Youngstown State on Nov. 25 for the first time since 2017.
Back at the Rolle Activity Center, the Lumberjacks welcome UNLV to town on Nov. 29. Northern Arizona has won two out of the last three matchups against the Rebels. The Lumberjacks then go on to play three-straight West Coast Conference (WCC) opponents starting with Pacific at home on Dec. 6. The other two matchups take place at San Francisco on Dec. 9 and at Pepperdine on Dec. 18. The Dons advanced to the WNIT a season ago.
After finals week but before splitting for the holidays, NAU will play at former Big Sky foe, Southern Utah, on Dec. 21. The Thunderbirds won the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) last year and advanced to the first round of the NCAA Tournament after finishing 23-10. The Lumberjacks topped SUU in the first meeting since Southern Utah's departure and own the all-time series, 26-20.
For the final time in 2023, the Lumberjacks play in Flagstaff to briefly open Big Sky play when it hosts Northern Colorado on Dec. 30. The Lumberjacks have won five-straight over the Bears, two of which have come in the Big Sky tournament.
The non-conference portion of the season concludes with a home and a road game against two Summit League opponents in the first installment of the Big Sky-Summit League Challenge Series. NAU plays host to South Dakota State for the first time in program history on Jan. 3 and then plays at North Dakota State on Jan. 6. The Jackrabbits are the defending Summit League Champions and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season, while the Bison earned a WNIT berth last year as well.
Big Sky Conference play resumes in full force on Jan. 11 and Jan. 13 when the Lumberjacks welcome Montana State and Montana to town. On Jan. 18, Northern Arizona and Portland State faceoff before trekking to Sacramento for a rematch of the Big Sky title game against the Hornets on Jan. 20.
Back at Findlay Toyota Court, the Lumberjacks play host to Idaho on Jan. 25 and Eastern Washington on Jan. 27. Northern Arizona then heads out to play four-straight road games, first against Weber State (Feb. 1) and Idaho State (Feb. 3) before the return trips to Montana (Feb. 8) and Montana State (Feb. 10). NAU picked up road victories at all four locations last season.
The Lumberjacks will flip-flop home and away series for the rest of the season following the road trip. A home slate against Sacramento State on Feb. 15 and Portland State on Feb. 17 takes place before traveling to Idaho (Feb. 22) and Eastern Washington (Feb. 24). The 'Jacks swept Idaho last season and split with the Eagles, but topped EWU in the semifinal game at the championships.
The final home slate of the season takes place on Feb. 29 against Idaho State and on March 2 against Weber State before closing the regular season with a Monday matchup at Northern Colorado on March 4.
Northern Arizona returns six players from a squad that finished 21-14 overall last season, the most wins in a single season since 2006-07. The Lumberjacks also welcome six newcomers, four of which are true freshmen. NAU clinched a share of the regular season title last year and, after advancing to the championship game for the second year in a row, earned the program's first WNIT bid.
