Rutgers Women’s Basketball to Host Defending Champion UCLA in 2026-27 Big Ten Slate
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Rutgers women’s basketball knows which Big Ten opponents it will face during the first season of the Gary Redus II era.
The conference announced the home and road designations for the 2026-27 season on June 8. Rutgers will play an 18-game Big Ten schedule featuring eight single-play opponents at home, eight single-play opponents on the road and one team both home and away.
Penn State will be Rutgers’ repeat opponent, giving the Scarlet Knights nine conference home games and nine road games.
Defending national champion UCLA coming to Rutgers
Defending national champion UCLA headlines Rutgers’ group of home opponents. The Bruins won the 2026 NCAA championship, securing the first national title in program history.
USC will also visit Rutgers during the upcoming season. The Scarlet Knights traveled to face UCLA and USC during the 2025-26 campaign but will host both programs in 2026-27.
Rutgers will also welcome Illinois, Michigan State, Nebraska, Northwestern, Ohio State and Purdue.
The complete list of Rutgers’ single-play home opponents is:
Illinois
Michigan State
Nebraska
Northwestern
Ohio State
Purdue
UCLA
USC
The exact dates and tipoff times for those games have not been announced.
Rutgers will travel to Washington and Oregon
Rutgers’ conference road schedule includes games against Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
The Scarlet Knights will also travel to the Pacific Northwest to face Washington and Oregon. Rutgers hosted both programs in the 2025-26 season. The Scarlet Knights hosted Washington at home for our first meeting with them and hosted Oregon for their first meeting at Rutgers in 35 years, since their 1990 meeting.
The complete list of Rutgers’ single-play road opponents is:
Indiana
Iowa
Maryland
Michigan
Minnesota
Wisconsin
Washington
Oregon
Penn State remains the repeat opponent
Rutgers and Penn State will meet twice during the regular season for the third consecutive campaign.
The Scarlet Knights play Penn State home and away. Penn State is the only Big Ten opponent Rutgers will face both at home and on the road before postseason play.
The pairing completes Rutgers’ 18-game conference rotation:
Eight single-play home games.
Eight single-play road games.
One home game against Penn State.
One road game against Penn State.
The official Rutgers announcement did not include game dates, starting times or television designations. Those details will be announced when the complete 2026-27 schedule is finalized.
The upcoming conference schedule will be the first for Redus, who was named the fourth head coach in Rutgers women’s basketball history on March 9.
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Edward Blair II is a journalist, sportscaster, news producer, and multimedia professional with experience spanning sports journalism, broadcast production, coaching, and digital media. He currently serves as a News Producer for KOTA Territory News in Rapid City, South Dakota, while continuing to contribute sports coverage across multiple platforms. Blair has covered professional, collegiate, and pro sports as a writer for Sports Illustrated's On SI network, including coverage of the Seattle Storm, Philadelphia 76ers, Illinois Fighting Illini, and other programs. He also wrote for Last Word on College Football, where he covered Michigan Wolverines football and college football storylines nationwide. He is a contributor to Rutgers On SI.
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