MOSCOW, Idaho --The Idaho Women's Basketball team tips off the 2021-22 season inside the new Idaho Central Credit Union (ICCU) Arena this week with two non-conference matchups against Lewis-Clark State College on Nov. 9 and San Diego on Nov. 14. Opening night against LCSC will tip at 6 p.m. on Tuesday while a matchup against the Toreros will get underway at 1 p.m. on Sunday.

"It is going to be an emotional day," said Head coach Jon Newlee. "I think everyone is going to be hyped up about it. Now that we know that this goes on our record then I think everyone is going to be focused. Emotions are going to be running high. There has been a lot of excitement that we have been waiting to have a real game in here (ICCU Arena). It's great that it is finally here but it is just the start of a long process that hopefully will end with good things in March."

Both games will be streamed live on ESPN+ while fans can also listen to the game at govandals.com/listen and on KMAX840 AM. Live Stats can be found here.

Idaho returns to the court after finishing runner-up in the Big Sky Championship game a season ago. The Vandals finished the 2020-21 campaign with a 17-7 overall record and 14-3 in conference play.

Lewis-Clark State College enters the contest 1-0 after defeating Whitman College, 81-77 to open the season. Last year, LCSC recorded a 14-6 record and made an appearance in the NAIA Round of 16.

The Vandals will face LCSC for the 23rd time dating back to 1978. Idaho is 18-4 all-time against Lewis-Clark State College and 13-4 at home.

San Diego will kick off their season after finishing the shortened 2020-21 campaign 12-7. The Toreros were picked to finish third behind BYU and Gonzaga in the West Coast Conference Women's Basketball Preseason Poll.

San Diego will be led by 2021-22 All-WCC Women's Basketball Preseason Team members Myah Pace and Jordyn Edwards. Pace, a 5-11 guard, led the team in scoring last season with 11.8 points per game. Edwards, a 5-8 guard, ranked second on the team in scoring at 10.4 points and helped lead a defense that was nationally ranked by tallying 55 steals.  

Sunday's matchup will be the fifth meeting between the two programs with each side earning two wins apiece. 

FOLLOW: Fans can follow the Vandals all season long on Twitter and Instagram, @VandalsWBB and with the Voice of the Vandals, Doug Taylor, at GoVandals.com/Listen. The game will air on ESPN +.

PRESEASON NOTES 

POLLS
Idaho was picked to finish third by both the coaches and the media in the Big Sky Preseason Polls after receiving 82 points in the coaches' poll and 202 total points in the media poll.

PRESEASON MVP

Junior Beyonce Bea was named the Big Sky Conference Preseason Most Valuable Player after leading the Vandals to the Big Sky Championship game last season. The Washougal, Wash. native was selected as a unanimous first-team All-Big Sky member in 2020-21. She ranked tied for third in the conference for scoring after averaging 16.2 points while grabbing 7.7 rebounds per contest. 

NON-CONFERENCE SLATE

Head coach Jon Newlee and his coaching staff built a strong non-conference schedule that is headlined by three NCAA tournament teams from 2020-21 - Oregon State and Washington State from the Pac-12 and Texas from the Big 12. The Beavers came in ranked No. 14 in the first Associated Press poll while the Longhorns sit at No. 25. That won't be the only tests the Vandals face in their non-conference slate this season as they will also get a chance to lace up against two top teams from the West Coast Conference (San Diego and San Francisco) and Missouri Valley Conference (Drake and Northern Iowa).

NEWCOMERS

The 2021-22 Vandal roster will showcase five freshmen and two transfers that will help replace three starters from last season. Former Sacramento State forward Tiana Johnson enters her senior season for the Vandals where she will look to build off of a strong junior campaign, where she averaged 12.2 points and 7.2 rebounds per game for the Hornets. Graduate student Louise Forsyth will add experience to the Idaho backcourt after playing in 93 contests over her four-year stay at Gonzaga.