Nebraska will return to an 18-game regular-season conference schedule for the 2021-22 schedule. The Huskers announced their Big Ten home, road, and double-dip conference matchups on Thursday.
Under the direction of sixth-year head coach Amy Williams, Nebraska will play two games each against NCAA Elite Eight qualifier Indiana (21-6 last year) and NCAA Sweet Sixteen participant Iowa (20-10) during Big Ten play. Nebraska, which advanced to the Round of 16 in last season’s WNIT, will also take on Minnesota (8-13), Penn State (9-15), and Wisconsin (5-19) both on the road and at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
NCAA Sweet Sixteen participant Michigan (16-6) will come to Pinnacle Bank Arena for the Huskers’ only meeting with the Wolverines during the regular season. It’ll mark the return of Leigha Brown, who was named the league’s Sixth Player of the Year for Nebraska in 2019 before transferring to Ann Arbor. Nebraska played the Wolverines only once last season as well, losing 64-62 on the road.
NCAA tourney qualifiers Northwestern (16-9) and Rutgers (14-5) also highlight Nebraska’s Big Ten home-only games. Nebraska will also play Purdue (7-16) once at home.
The Huskers will face the league’s top team, Maryland (26-3), only once and on the road. Nebraska will also have road-only matchups with Michigan State (15-9), Ohio State (13-7), and Illinois (5-18).
Overall, Nebraska is scheduled to play nine of its 18 regular-season conference games against teams that advanced to the 2021 NCAA Tournament—five on the road and four at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
Last season featured 19 conference games for Nebraska as the Big Ten played a reduced, Covid-influenced schedule. The Huskers only played three games against non-conference opponents. Nebraska finished 13-13 on the year and 9-10 in conference play, earning an eight-seed in the conference tournament and losing in the quarterfinal round to eventual champion Maryland.
The Huskers are still building out their non-conference schedule. More details on dates and opponents will be announced at a later time.
- Home games: Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Northwestern, Penn State, Purdue, Rutgers, Wisconsin
- Road games: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan State, Minnesota, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin
Derek is a newbie on the Hail Varsity staff covering Husker athletics. In college, he was best known as ‘that guy from Twitter.’ He has covered a Sugar Bowl, a tennis national championship and almost everything in between (except an NCAA men’s basketball tournament game… *tears*). In his spare time, he can be found arguing with literally anyone about sports.
