Aug. 19, 2004

LAS VEGAS - The UNLV women's basketball team will be undertaking its toughest schedule in head coach Regina Miller's seven years as the Lady Rebels' 2004-05 schedule was announced by the athletic department on Thursday. The Lady Rebels have a possible eight games against teams that played in the postseason in 2004, and will also be taking on teams from the ACC, Big East, Big 12, and Big Ten conferences. The season begins for UNLV in the WBCA/BTI Classic, a preseason tournament in Seattle, Wash., against 2004 Final Four participant Minnesota on Sunday, Nov. 14. UNLV will then take on South Carolina on Nov. 15 in the second game of the classic. UNLV will also host two high profile tournaments during the season. First up is the annual Lady Rebel Shootout, which this year includes perennial top 25 teams North Carolina and Villanova, while UT-Arlington closes out the field for the tournament held Nov. 27-28 in the Cox Pavilion. The Lady Rebels will then host the first-ever Duel in the Desert, an eight-team tournament that features six teams that played in the postseason 2003-04, including Texas Tech, Virginia Tech, Western Michigan, Arkansas State, and Iowa State. The tournament will have two four-team brackets, and be held in the Cox on Dec. 18-19. "This is our toughest schedule yet," said Miller. "There's a process you must go through in order to rebuild a team and program into one which could take on a schedule that has so many games against teams from the power conferences. I feel with the players that we are returning and the experience they gained last year, this is the time to play a tough and competitive schedule like this. We're an upperclassmen orientated team, and I feel one that will be up to the challenge." "With the Duel in the Desert, we have a great tournament field, and it should be an exciting two days of basketball. We have an ideal location here in Las Vegas, we never have a problem getting teams to come here for a game or a tournament, and it provides a great opportunity and exposure for our team. I feel that to be the best, you have to play the best, so this helps the program to host a tournament of this strength." The home opener for UNLV comes against UCF on Nov. 19, while its annual game against in-state rival Nevada, Reno falls on Dec. 22 in the Thomas & Mack Center, part of a doubleheader with the men's team. There is also a two-game road swing scheduled for Michigan, as UNLV will take on the University of Detroit on Dec. 4 and the University of Michigan on Dec. 6. The Lady Rebels will open the conference season on the road for three straight games, beginning at San Diego State on Jan. 15, before hosting their MWC home opener on Jan. 27 against New Mexico. UNLV returns four starters and eight of its top nine players from last year's team that finished with a 26-8 record while advancing to the WNIT championship game. Click here to view the complete 2004-05 UNLV schedule.