University of Houston Athletics
Cougars Learn Conference Opponents
6/8/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
HOUSTON â€" The Houston Cougar Women's Basketball program learned its American Athletic Conference pairings for the 2016-17 season with an announcement from league officials Wednesday morning.
Each team in The American will play a 16-game conference schedule in 2016-17. Each team will play six of its nine opponents twice, while playing the four remaining opponents once, meeting two only at home, and the remaining two on the road.
Houston drew UCF, Cincinnati, East Carolina, SMU, Tulane and Tulsa as opponents they will meet in a home-and-home series. The Cougars will face USF and Temple inside Hofheinz Pavilion, while facing Memphis and defending NCAA Champion UConn on the road. The official 2016-17 American Athletic Conference Women's Basketball schedule will be released at a later date and will include official dates and times.
Houston returns a wealth of experience from last season's squad to the 2016-17 season, including unanimous American Athletic Conference All-Freshman Team selection Serithia Hawkins. The Moore, Okla., native led the Cougars in multiple categories this season including points, steals, and rebounds, while starting 28 games and appearing in all 30.
PAIRINGS
| Team | Play Only Home | Play Only Away |
|---|---|---|
| Houston | USF, Temple | UConn, Memphis |
| Cincinnati | UConn, Tulsa | USF, Temple |
| East Carolina | SMU, Tulane | Memphis, Tulsa |
| Memphis | East Carolina, Houston | UConn, Tulsa |
| SMU | USF, Tulane | East Carolina, Temple |
| Temple | Cincinnati, SMU | UCF, Houston |
| Tulane | UCF, Tulsa | East Carolina, SMU |
| Tulsa | East Carolina, Memphis | Cincinnati, Tulane |
| UCF | UConn, Temple | USF, Tulane |
| UConn | Houston, Memphis | UCF, Cincinnati |
| USF | UCF, Cincinnati | Houston, SMU |
REGENTS APPROVE RENOVATIONS TO BASKETBALL ARENA
The University of Men's and Women's Basketball programs moved closer to a new competition home facility when school regents approved the start of the design process for the renovation of the Houston Basketball arena during its meeting Nov. 19.
Regents approved a project budget of up to $60 million with an anonymous donor pledging a $20 million gift to facilitate the arena's renovation.
Design work is scheduled to begin in March 2016 with construction starting one year later. Plans for the Cougars' home facility during the 2017-18 season have not been finalized and will be announced at a later date. The renovated facility is expected to be ready for game competition for the beginning of the 2018-19 season.
"This project has been long overdue, and we are grateful that Dr. Khator and our Board of Regents saw the need for this step with our basketball arena," Vice President for Athletics Hunter Yurachek said. "We look forward to starting the design process in the next few months and creating a facility that will provide the highest level of amenities to our fans and a significant home-court advantage for our Men's and Women's Basketball student-athletes."
Preliminary estimated capacity for the renovated arena will be reduced to 7,420 from its current seating bowl of 8,479. However, initial plans call for the court level to be raised three feet with fan seating moved closer to the court as part of an emphasis to improve the overall fan experience.
More than 2,000 premium seats will be developed to give fans the ultimate luxury seating options. That total includes a preliminary design of 1,750 club seats, 20 loge boxes with four seats in each, two open-air suites with 32 seats per unit and 90 courtside seats.
The arena's concourse level will be expanded to improve circulation with significant upgrades to the sound system, video board and arena seating.
STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive daily information and in-game updates by following @UHCougarWBB on Twitter. Fans can also catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team's Facebook page at facebook.com/UHCougarWBB.
