June 1, 2009
NORMAL, Ill. -
The Illinois State women's basketball team will open the 2009-10 season at the 24th annual KCRG-TV9 Hawkeye Challenge, Nov. 14-15. The tournament is hosted by Iowa and will also include UCLA and Santa Clara.
The Redbirds will face UCLA in the opening round Nov. 14 and Iowa will host Santa Clara. The losers and winners of the opening round games will play Nov. 15. Times for all games have yet to be determined. Iowa is the defending tournament champion and has won 18 of the previous 23 Hawkeye Challenges. UCLA is making its second appearance in the tournament (1990), while ISU and Santa Clara are participating for the first time.
Illinois State and UCLA have played just once before in women's basketball, a 65-62 Redbird win in Los Angeles, Dec. 30, 1982. ISU is 1-4 all-time against Iowa, with the last meeting coming in 1996, and has never played Santa Clara.
UCLA was 19-12 last season, 9-9 in the Pac-10 conference. Iowa was 21-11, tied for second in the Big Ten at 13-5 and lost to Georgia Tech in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Santa Clara was 4-27 in 2008-09.
