Sun Belt Conference announces 2017-18 Men’s and Women’s Basketball Conference Schedules
NEW ORLEANS – The Sun Belt Conference announced the 2017-18 men’s and women’s basketball conference schedules on Thursday. The conference will utilize an 18-game conference schedule for each men’s and women’s basketball program.
Men’s and women’s basketball games will be played on a Thursday-Saturday schedule as doubleheaders during the 2017-18 season. Travel partners will be utilized as men’s and women’s teams will play identical opponents during doubleheaders. The opening weekend of conference play will follow a Friday-Sunday schedule as league games start on Friday, December 29, and continue on Sunday, December 31.
“Moving the schedule to Thursday-Saturday doubleheaders is the right decision for the benefit of our men’s and women’s basketball teams,” Sun Belt Conference commissioner Karl Benson said. “This is the second consecutive year our basketball student-athletes, coaches and fans will see the benefits of our 12-team membership structure with six sets of travel partners located in seven states. A 12-team league allows for a manageable travel schedule for our men’s and women’s basketball student-athletes that results in less missed class time and much more time on campus rather than on airplanes and buses.”
Travel partners will be utilized for two-game road trips throughout the conference schedule to maximize rest, minimize travel times and limit missed class time for men’s and women’s basketball student-athletes. Men’s and women’s basketball teams will only travel four times for two-game road trips and will each take just one, single-game road trip all season. Those single-game road trips will be for rivalry games.
Tip times for conference games will be announced by each institution at a later date.
The 2017-18 men’s and women’s basketball season will be the second in which an 18-game schedule with 12 teams will be utilized. All 12 men’s and women’s basketball teams will travel to the 2018 Sun Belt Conference Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships, March 6-11, in New Orleans at Lakefront Arena. It will be the fifth consecutive tournament held in New Orleans.
Men’s and Women’s Basketball Schedule
Friday December 29, 2017
Texas State at Appalachian State
ULM at Arkansas State
UTA at Coastal Carolina
Georgia Southern at Troy
Georgia State at South Alabama
Louisiana at Little Rock
Sunday December 31, 2017
UTA at Appalachian State
Louisiana at Arkansas State
Texas State at Coastal Carolina
Georgia Southern at South Alabama
Georgia State at Troy
ULM at Little Rock
Thursday January 4, 2018
Appalachian State at Louisiana
Arkansas State at Georgia Southern
Coastal Carolina at ULM
Little Rock at Georgia State
South Alabama at Texas State
Troy at UTA
Saturday January 6, 2018
Appalachian State at ULM
Arkansas State at Georgia State
Coastal Carolina at Louisiana
Little Rock at Georgia Southern
South Alabama at UTA
Troy at Texas State
Thursday January 11, 2018
Georgia State at Appalachian State
Texas State at Arkansas State
Georgia Southern at Coastal Carolina
UTA at Little Rock
Saturday January 13, 2018
Georgia Southern at Appalachian State
UTA at Arkansas State
Georgia State at Coastal Carolina
Texas State at Little Rock
ULM at Louisiana
Troy at South Alabama
Thursday January 18, 2018
Appalachian State at Troy
Coastal Carolina at South Alabama
Louisiana at UTA
ULM at Texas State
Saturday January 20, 2018
Appalachian State at South Alabama
Arkansas State at Little Rock
Coastal Carolina at Troy
Georgia Southern at Georgia State
Louisiana at Texas State
ULM at UTA
Thursday January 25, 2018
Little Rock at Appalachian State
Arkansas State at Coastal Carolina
Texas State at Georgia Southern
UTA at Georgia State
South Alabama at Louisiana
Troy at ULM
Saturday January 27, 2018
Arkansas State at Appalachian State
Little Rock at Coastal Carolina
UTA at Georgia Southern
Texas State at Georgia State
Troy at Louisiana
South Alabama at ULM
Thursday February 1, 2018
Appalachian State at UTA
Georgia State at Arkansas State
Coastal Carolina at Texas State
Georgia Southern at Little Rock
Saturday February 3, 2018
Appalachian State at Texas State
Georgia Southern at Arkansas State
Coastal Carolina at UTA
Georgia State at Little Rock
Louisiana at ULM
South Alabama at Troy
Thursday February 8, 2018
Arkansas State at Troy
ULM at Georgia Southern
Louisiana at Georgia State
Little Rock at South Alabama
Saturday February 10, 2018
Appalachian State at Coastal Carolina
Arkansas State at South Alabama
Louisiana at Georgia Southern
ULM at Georgia State
Little Rock at Troy
Texas State at UTA
Thursday February 15, 2018
South Alabama at Appalachian State
Troy at Coastal Carolina
Texas State at Louisiana
UTA at ULM
Saturday February 17, 2018
Troy at Appalachian State
Little Rock at Arkansas State
South Alabama at Coastal Carolina
Georgia State at Georgia Southern
UTA at Louisiana
Texas State at ULM
Thursday February 22, 2018
Appalachian State at Arkansas State
Coastal Carolina at Little Rock
Georgia Southern at UTA
Georgia State Texas State
Louisiana at Troy
ULM at South Alabama
Saturday February 24, 2018
Appalachian State at Little Rock
Coastal Carolina at Arkansas State
Georgia Southern at Texas State
Georgia State at UTA
Louisiana at South Alabama
ULM at Troy
Thursday March 1, 2018
Arkansas State at Louisiana
South Alabama at Georgia Southern
Troy at Georgia State
Little Rock at ULM
Saturday March 3, 2018
Coastal Carolina at Appalachian State
Arkansas State at ULM
Troy at Georgia Southern
South Alabama at Georgia State
Little Rock at Louisiana
UTA at Texas State