UConn women's nonconference schedule highlighted by Dixon Classic
New York - The last time UConn played in the Maggie Dixon Classic, the Huskies tied UCLA for the longest winning streak in NCAA college basketball history.
Defending national champion Connecticut will make its return to Madison Square Garden to play California on Dec. 22 in the eighth annual women's basketball doubleheader, which honors the late Army women's basketball coach. Dixon died in April 2006 of arrhythmia, probably caused by an enlarged heart. Her death came three weeks after her first season as a head coach, when she led Army to its first NCAA berth.
Texas A&M will face St. John's in the first game.
UConn met Ohio State in the 2010 Classic and beat the Buckeyes for the Huskies' 88th straight victory to match the Bruins' vaunted streak. Connecticut went on to win a record 90 consecutive games before losing at Stanford.
The Huskies are coming off their eighth national championship in April and return most of the team, including the most outstanding player of the NCAA tournament, Breanna Stewart. Geno Auriemma's squad will face Cal, which had the best season in school history. The Golden Bears reached the Final Four for the first time before falling to Louisville.
• UConn announced its entire nonconference schedule for 2013-14 on Monday. The schedule includes 13 games: seven at home, four on the road and two at neutral sites, including the Maggie Dixon Classic.
The Huskies will play five games against teams that reached last year's NCAA tournament Sweet 16 and two games against teams which advanced to the Elite Eight.
UConn will play Hartford (Nov. 9), Pac-12 champion Stanford (Nov. 11), Oregon (Nov. 20), UC Davis (Dec. 5) at home. They will also compete against Boston University (Nov. 22), Monmouth (Nov. 23) and St. Bonaventure (Nov. 24) at home as part of the Basketball Hall of Fame Women's Challenge before meeting Ohio State (Dec. 1) in the final game of the tournament at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Mass.
The Huskies will travel to Maryland (Nov. 15), Penn State (Nov. 17), ACC Champion Duke for the Jimmy V Classic (Dec. 17) and Baylor (Jan. 13).
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