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Wisconsin Basketball: Badgers to play Virginia Cavaliers in ACC/Big Ten Challenge

By Trevor Jossart

Feb 15, 2017; Charlottesville, VA, USA; A general view of the game between the Duke Blue Devils and the Virginia Cavaliers in the second half at John Paul Jones Arena. The Blue Devils won 65-55. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 15, 2017; Charlottesville, VA, USA; A general view of the game between the Duke Blue Devils and the Virginia Cavaliers in the second half at John Paul Jones Arena. The Blue Devils won 65-55. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /
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The matchups for the 2017 ACC/Big Ten Challenge have been announced.

For the third time in six seasons, the Wisconsin Badgers men’s basketball team has drawn the Virginia Cavaliers in the annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge, a non-conference event that pairs two of the most prestigious conferences in all of college basketball against each other.

The Badgers are currently on a two-game winning streak in the challenge, having beaten the Syracuse Orange the last two seasons in impressive fashion. Wisconsin also sits on victories in three of their last four ACC/Big Ten. Their last win against a team not named Syracuse was four seasons ago against none other than the Virginia Cavaliers.

Wisconsin and Virginia are fairly familiar with each other and have had small ties to one another in recent history. Of course, their current head coach Tony Bennett has Wisconsin ties, with his father Dick Bennett being a longstanding coach of Wisconsin in the 1990s. Tony played his college-playing days at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay before experiencing a bit of the NBA prior to his coaching career.

Virginia won the first of the two most recent battles in this conference challenge, knocking off the Badgers 60-54 in 2012 in Madison. The Badgers returned the favor, though, in 2013- knocking off the Cavaliers 48-38 in a defensive slugfest in a battle of two nationally ranked teams.

Both teams were place in the same bracket in last year’s NCAA Tournament and were one game away from playing each other in the Sweet 16. Of course, the Badgers ended up playing Florida instead after the Gators demolished the No. 5 seeded Cavaliers in the round of 32.

In addition to the Badgers and Cavaliers matchup, the rest of the November classic was announced as well, with major matchups like Purdue-Lousiville and Michigan State-Notre Dame.

No date and times have been announced, but what we do know is that the Badgers will be back on the road for the nation’s longest current conference rivalry event.

Stay tuned for official time and network.

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