CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. --- The 2011-12 University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women's basketball slate will have a bit of a different look this season. UTC will play in a pair of tournaments and begin conference play early in December. The University of Tennessee remains a highlight, but will be played later in the year to accommodate for the Preseason WNIT.

"Because of the NIT, we had to move the game a little differently," Lady Mocs Head Coach Wes Moore said. "They ended up wanting to move it a lot differently so it ended up on January 3. It's a little different look. We got sandwiched in between some of their conference games, but it's the date that worked out."

The Lady Mocs will tip off the season hosting UAB in the preseason tournament on November 11 at the McKenzie Arena. UTC is guaranteed three games in the tournament and a win could place Chattanooga up against Brittney Griner and Baylor in the second round.

"We're excited about playing in the Preseason NIT," Moore said. "Thanks to our fan support, being able to host is a nice perk.

"You can only play in the tournament once every four years and just one team from each conference is invited. We were invited to play last year, but our schedule was just such that we couldn't make it work. It was unusual that they went ahead and extended the offer for the next year. It is a nice honor to be invited."

The Lady Mocs will spend Thanksgiving in Mexico for the Cancun Challenge hosted by Triple Crown Sports at the Moon Palace Resort. The event will feature 10 teams in a two-day format where each will play two games on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday. Chattanooga's two opponents are Cincinnati and Idaho State, but the schedule has not yet been announced.

The remainder of the non-conference slate will be sprinkled with a few Southern Conference matchups that begin the first of December with a trip to UNCG on the first and Elon two days later. Those two games will affect the final days of the fall semester, but the situation could not be avoided.

"I petitioned the conference to look at that to see if we could avoid that happening," Moore said. "They said the 'ripple effect' would disrupt too many other people's schedules. I'm a little disappointed because those last days of classes before finals in an important time for review."

The Lady Mocs will close out the non-conference slate with four games bracketing the holiday break and a single SoCon contest.

It will be revenge time for the Lady Mocs who host Kennesaw State at the Roundhouse on December 12. The Owls edged the Lady Mocs by a point in overtime in Kennesaw, Ga., last year. Three days later, Belmont will come to town for the first game in Chattanooga since 1981.

Chattanooga will step back into SoCon play on December 19 when it plays host to Western Carolina followed by a trip back in time to a former league foe East Tennessee State. UTC will travel to Johnson City to take on the Lady Bucs and former UTC Aide Karen Kemp on December 22 before taking a break for the holidays.

January will see a return to action and a return to Knoxville as the Lady Mocs will take on the eight-time National Champion Lady Vols and legendary head coach Pat Summitt. Summitt, with more than 1,000 career wins, was diagnosed with early onset dementia (Alzheimer's type) over the summer, but will continue to guide Tennessee throughout the season.

"Coach Summit has been awesome to me and a lot of young coaches," Moore reflected. "This is a shock but if anybody is going to battle or fight, it's Pat Summit. She has been a big impact on the state of Tennessee, I think that's why you see the level of interest in girl's and women's basketball. It's because of her. She's also had an impact nationally and I believe has made the game what it is today."

Chattanooga concludes the season in conference play and will look to return to the top of the league standings after finishing third last year.

The Lady Mocs lost just two players in veterans Bailey Dewart (Spartanburg, S.C.) and Kiara Smith (Rome, Ga.) who both battled knee injuries throughout their careers. Moore adds four freshmen to the lineup and will gain redshirt sophomore Faith Dupree after the fall exams. The 6-3 Knoxville native transferred to Chattanooga at Christmas last year and will have to sit out due to NCAA transfer rules. She will miss the first seven games of the 2011-12 season.

The Lady Mocs picked up some more good news at the post, a position at which Chattanooga had a deficit last season. Appalachian State all-conference forward Ashlen Dewart (Spartanburg, S.C.), sister of former Lady Moc Bailey Dewart, showed up in Chattanooga for the first day of classes on August 22 and approached Moore about playing for the Lady Mocs later that night.

"She came by, with Bailey [Monday night] and informed me that she would like to play basketball at UTC," Moore said. "She has to sit out a year. In fact, we wouldn't have had a scholarship available anyway.

"Appalachian State has a good program over there and I'm sure they will continue to be good. The difference for her was having Bailey here. She enjoyed her career here although I'm sure it was frustrating with her injuries, but that was probably the attraction."

Chattanooga has requested her release from the Mountaineers. Dewart will spend a year in residence at Chattanooga as a walk-on and will be eligible to play at the start of the 2012-13 season. She helped lead App State to the regular season league title last season making the Mountaineers the first team to win the SoCon regular season title outright since 1999.

The Lady Mocs will host Lee University in an exhibition contest on November 1 and will tip off at 5:30 p.m. to be followed immediately by the men's exhibition game.