Matchups for debut ACC/SEC Challenge set

The matchups for the inaugural men’s ACC/SEC Challenge are set, and there are a few intriguing ones.

The conferences announced Wednesday that 14 games, across Nov. 28-29, will be staged on ESPN and its affiliates. The headliners are Miami at Kentucky, Tennessee at North Carolina and Duke at Arkansas. Louisville is the only member of either conference that is not participating in the showcase — the ACC has 15 members, while the SEC has 14. 

The event is taking the place of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, which ended after last season. The Big Ten’s new broadcast deal with Fox, CBS and NBC kicks in this fall, and given that ESPN put on the ACC/Big Ten Challenge since its inception in 1999, continuing that event was unfeasible. 

The three aforementioned matchups are sure to garner the most eyeballs. 

Miami enters 2023-24 off an electrifying run to the Final Four and also reached the Elite Eight in 2021-22. How the Hurricanes fare in Rupp Arena, against one of the most talented (albeit youngest) teams in the country in Kentucky, will be fascinating to watch. 

Tennessee and North Carolina return key pieces from a season ago and add talented transfers, but both programs are looking to bounce back from disappointing finishes — to differing extents — to their respective years. The Volunteers bowed out of the Sweet 16 to FAU, while the Tar Heels went from preseason No. 1 to out of the NCAA Tournament entirely.

As for Duke and Arkansas, it marks a rematch of the 2022 Elite Eight matchup in San Francisco, which saw the Blue Devils advance to the Final Four in former head coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final season. 

Other noteworthy duels include Clemson at Alabama, Florida at Wake Forest, Virginia Tech at Auburn and Texas A&M at Virginia. On the women’s side, the marquee matchups include Virginia Tech at defending national champion LSU, Notre Dame at Tennessee and Louisville at Ole Miss. Given the importance of your nonconference performance in NCAA Tournament jockeying, the debut of this event is sure to be must-see TV.

The full list of matchups for the men’s and women’s sides are below.