The Inagural ACC/SEC Challenge Looms Large
Two power college basketball conferences are set for the very first ACC/SEC Challenge next week on the hardwood. After the ACC ended their Big 10 Challenge and the SEC ended their Big 12 Challenge last season a new storied battle was created between the ACC and the SEC teams through the ESPN network.
Preseason there were high hopes that the SEC could get eight, nine, or even ten teams into this year's 2024 NCAA Tournament. Early indicators have come back not favorable for the SEC teams. As of Friday night, after Thanksgiving through most of college basketball’s Feast Week the SEC teams were a combined 0-8 against ranked opponents. Kentucky lost to Kansas in the Champions Classic, Tennessee lost twice in Maui, Arkansas lost twice in the Battle 4 Atlantis, and Florida lost in the finals to Baylor in the NIT Tip-off among others.
Before we get further into the article, check out Fanatics! Fanatics.com has all of the best NCAA fan gear!
The ACC/SEC Challenge looms large for the SEC to gain some momentum towards the high expectations of the preseason. Arkansas likely will fall out of the top 25 on Monday after their showing in the Battle 4 Atlantis before the 9th ranked Duke Blue Devils come to Fayetteville for a visit. The tenth ranked Miami Hurricanes will come to Rupp Arena to challenge the 16th ranked Kentucky Wildcats in what was each set for marquee matchups. Both being set as home games should give each SEC school the environment edge and the SEC needs a solid showing. Other important matchups will be seventh ranked Tennessee at 14th ranked North Carolina and 12th ranked Texas A&M at 24th ranked Virginia.
On the Women’s side of the ACC/SEC Challenge there are four ranked versus ranked matchups with the marquee matchups being top ranked South Carolina traveling to 18th ranked North Carolina and 9th ranked Virginia Tech Hokies going to Baton Rouge to take on the defending champs and 7th ranked LSU Tigers.
Overall, there are 28 games being played over 3 nights next Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday between both Men’s and Women’s ACC and SEC schools. How will it come out? Which league will reign supreme in both challenges? Here is look at the matchups, where they are played and the times next week for both the Men’s and Women’s Challenges.
2023 ACC/SEC Men's Challenge
Tuesday, Nov. 28
LSU at Syracuse, 7 p.m.
Missouri at Pitt, 7 p.m.
Mississippi State at Georgia Tech, 7 p.m.
Notre Dame at South Carolina, 7 p.m.
Miami at Kentucky, 7:30 p.m.
NC State at Ole Miss, 9 p.m.
Clemson at Alabama, 9:30 p.m.
Wednesday, Nov. 29
Tennessee at North Carolina, 7:15 p.m.
Texas A&M at Virginia, 7:15 p.m.
Florida at Wake Forest, 7:15 p.m.
Duke at Arkansas, 9:15 p.m.
Virginia Tech at Auburn, 9:15 p.m.
Georgia at Florida State, 9:15 p.m.
Boston College at Vanderbilt, 9:15 p.m.
2023 ACC/SEC Women's Challenge
Wednesday, Nov. 29
Florida at Georgia Tech, 5 p.m.
Notre Dame at Tennessee, 5 p.m.
Vanderbilt at NC State, 7:15 p.m.
Miami at Mississippi State, 7:15 p.m.
Louisville at Ole Miss, 9:15 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 30
Missouri at Virginia, 5 p.m.
Duke at Georgia, 5 p.m.
Alabama at Syracuse, 7 p.m.
South Carolina at North Carolina, 7 p.m.
Arkansas at Florida State, 7 p.m.
Boston College at Kentucky, 7 p.m.
Texas A&M at Wake Forest, 9 p.m.
Virginia Tech at LSU, 9 p.m.
Clemson at Auburn, 9 p.m.
All times Eastern
Subscribe to College SportsCast on YouTube for more fun, original college sports shows. Or follow them on your favorite platforms on their Linktree page.
EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNTS: Use code STADIUMRANT20 for a 20% discount at Bulletproof Coffee, SwingJuice, and Performix. If you love to shotgun beers, use code STADIUMRANT10 at Wild Man Drinking Company.
If you enjoyed this article, try Stadium Rant Original shows on our Youtube channel, and subscribe!