University of North Carolina Athletics
UNC To Visit Penn State In Big Ten/ACC Challenge
May 19, 2011 | Women's Basketball
May 19, 2011
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Atlantic Coast Conference and the Big Ten Conference announced Thursday the pairings for the annual Big Ten/ACC Women's Basketball Challenge, which is in its fifth year of what began as a four-year agreement and has been extended until 2012. North Carolina will travel in the event for the third time in the last four season, as the Tar Heels meet Penn State in University Park, Pa., on Wednesday, Nov. 30.
Carolina is 3-1 in the current incarnation of the event, with home wins against Purdue and Iowa and a road victory over Ohio State. The Tar Heels suffered their lone loss at Michigan State in 2009.
The Big Ten/ACC Women's Basketball Challenge previously matched 11 teams from each conference in head-to-head competition traditionally on the first Wednesday and Thursday after Thanksgiving, following the Big Ten/ACC Men's Basketball Challenge. However, after last year's Big Ten expansion to include Nebraska, all 12 teams from each conference will participate in the early season Challenge.
The ACC has won all four previous Challenge titles, while in 2010 the ACC narrowly edged the competition, winning six of the 11 ACC/Big Ten Challenge games. The inaugural Challenge in 2007 saw the ACC collect its all-time highest eight victories.
The ACC and the Big Ten conference offices determine the schedule each season, and match-ups may repeat from year-to-year in efforts to coordinate similar opponents and reach competitive equity. In addition, the official title of the Challenge will rotate each year. The 2011 event will be referred to as the Big Ten/ACC Women's Basketball Challenge and will continue to mirror the official title of the two conferences' Challenge agreement for men's basketball.
The ACC and the Big Ten have long been among the most dominant conferences on the women's basketball scene. This past season, the ACC was represented by eight overall postseason squads, including six teams in the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship, making it the ninth-straight year the league has had at least six in the Big Dance. Overall, the ACC has made 14 Final Four appearances, including four in the past six years.
Since the 1999-2000 season, the two conferences have squared off in head-to-head competition on 115 occasions with the ACC holding a 64-51 advantage. Last season, the Big Ten boasted a 9-7 record over ACC teams.
Game times, as well as television and broadband coverage, will be announced at a later date. For more information about the Big Ten/ACC Women's Basketball Challenge, including a complete schedule, log on to theACC.com.
2011 CHALLENGE SCHEDULE
Wednesday, November 30
Boston College at Wisconsin
Nebraska at Georgia Tech
Michigan at Maryland
Florida State at Ohio State
North Carolina at Penn State
NC State at Northwestern
Virginia Tech at Iowa
Thursday, December 1
Illinois at Clemson
Purdue at Duke
Miami at Michigan State
Indiana at Virginia
Minnesota at Wake Forest
