Purdue women's basketball report: Nonconference schedule chatter

Plenty of home games expected during the 2024-25 season

What we know - or at least what we think we know - about the 2024-25 nonconference schedule:

• Look for an abundance of home games. Purdue can play up to 11 nonconference games and a majority are currently scheduled for Mackey Arena. The Big Ten schedule is 18 games and opponents were announced earlier this month.

• The home-and-home agreement with Notre Dame is expected to conclude this season. The Irish won last year’s meeting in South Bend by 37 points - the first matchup between the programs since the 2017 NCAA tournament and the first regular-season meeting since 2012. Notre Dame hasn’t played the Boilermakers in Mackey Arena since the 2011-12 season. Overall, the Irish have won nine straight in the series, and Purdue’s last win came in 2005. Look for this game to be played early in the season.

• Last season, the Boilermakers played Florida and Georgia in the Bahamas over Thanksgiving. This season’s holiday trip is to Fort Myers, Florida for two games. The names of these tournaments seem to change every year but last year’s event was called the Fort Myers Tip-Off. Purdue is scheduled to play at least one Power 4 opponent - no more Power 5 with the demise of the Pac-12. The Boilermakers are tentatively scheduled to play on Nov. 28 (Thanksgiving) and Nov. 29 at the Suncoast Credit Union Arena on the campus of Florida SouthWestern State College. This trip may end up as the team’s only games away from Mackey Arena before Big Ten play.

Dave Wegiel Photography

• The Boilermakers are in line to host four in-state programs for nonconference games. One of those is Notre Dame.

• Is an SEC program set to visit Mackey Arena for the second straight year? Purdue beat Texas A&M last season.

• Look for a former Boilermaker - and a teammate of Katie Gearlds - to bring her program to West Lafayette.

• In what has become a staple of the nonconference season, the Education Day game will likely be played in December again. The game usually starts at 11 a.m. or noon on a weekday, but a lot depends on the schedules of the local/area schools and how it fits with what works for Purdue. Last year, the Boilermakers beat Indiana State before the Christmas break.

• Expect the Big Ten to schedule at least one game in December. Last year, Purdue played at Minnesota.

• In the past, the Boilermakers have played one exhibition game and a “secret scrimmage.” We’ll see if it continues.

• Keep in mind nonconference schedules are written in pencil until announced by the schools. TV gets involved and will move games around to fit their needs. You’re also trying to manage the schedule for the men’s basketball team and the TV needs in that area, but most of it should be settled by now.

• Non-scheduling note: The roster - with numbers - for the women’s basketball team is set for the 2024-25 season.

ICYMI

A few non-women’s basketball items of note:

• Diving coach Adam Soldati is stepping down after he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). He was always a pleasure to deal with from a media standpoint, and this news was tough to digest. In the story, you’ll see how you can help the family. Soldati is one of Purdue’s most successful coaches in its history as Boilermaker divers have won 14 NCAA Championships since 2009. The honors and awards are numerous. David Boudia will take over as the program’s diving coach.

• The baseball team is the No. 6 seed in this week’s Big Ten tournament. Purdue was in first place at the start of May but dropped seven of its last nine conference games. One of those losses was a ninth-inning meltdown against the Hoosiers in the final game of the series. If the Boilermakers hold on, maybe they’re seeded higher, but it probably doesn’t matter since there’s not a lot of separation between the teams. Purdue opens the double-elimination tournament on Tuesday against Indiana in Omaha. The tournament runs through Sunday.

• Purdue was the only school to advance its men’s and women’s golf teams to the NCAA Championships held at the Omni La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, California. The women’s team finished 29th, and the men’s team is seeded No. 19. Action for the men’s tournament starts Friday.