On Wednesday, ESPN announced the matchups for the 2023-24 ACC/SEC Challenge. Virginia Tech men's basketball will travel to Auburn on Wednesday, Nov. 29 (9:15 p.m. ET) while women's basketball has a Final Four rematch on the road with national champions LSU on Thursday, Nov. 30 (9 p.m. ET).
The event replaces the ACC/Big Ten Challenge since ESPN no longer owns the Big Ten's media rights. The ACC/Big Ten Challenge began in 1999; Virginia Tech men's basketball finished with a 7-9 record while the women's team was 9-6.
Coverage details, including platform designations and commentator information, will be announced at a later date.
Auburn: Wed., Nov. 29
The Hokies' meeting with Auburn will be the eighth in program history and the first since December 1999 when they clashed in Puerto Rico. It'll be the second contest in Auburn, Ala. — the Tigers won 76-74 in December 1973. Tech is 2-5 all-time in the series; both wins were in Blacksburg (in 1974 and 1920, respectively).
Under Bruce Pearl, Auburn has been a force over the last six years, advancing to four of the last five NCAA tournaments. The lone miss was due to a self-imposed ban. The Tigers made a run to the Final Four in 2019, too, finishing 30-10.
Last season, Auburn finished 21-13 (10-8 SEC) with a 14-2 record at home. It was a No. 9 seed in the Big Dance, beating Iowa before falling to Houston in the second round, and finished 32nd in KenPom and 35th in the NET rankings.
"Our program is very much looking forward to representing our institution, our fans and our conference in the inaugural ACC/SEC Challenge," Tech head coach Mike Young said in the program's release. "Auburn is an outstanding opponent for us, led by Coach [Bruce] Pearl, whom I have great respect for."
In Young's four seasons in Blacksburg, the Hokies have faced just one SEC foe: Florida in the 2021 NCAA tournament, a 75-70 loss in overtime. However, they'll check off the box twice this fall when they meet South Carolina in Charlotte in November.
The addition of Auburn is just another piece of Tech's non-conference schedule. The neutral-site game against the Gamecocks (Nov. 10) was previously announced, along with the ESPN Events Invitational (Nov. 23, 24 and 26) that features Boise State, Butler, Florida Atlantic, Iowa State, Penn State, Texas A&M and VCU. Other home games against Coppin State (season-opener on Nov. 6) and American (Dec. 22) were previously reported.
LSU: Thurs., Nov. 30
Almost eight months after sharing the American Airlines Center floor in Dallas, Virginia Tech and LSU will meet again in Baton Rouge in November.
The Tigers, who beat Iowa in the national championship two days later, won 79-72 thanks to a strong fourth quarter where they outscored the Hokies 29-13. Despite that, Tech dominated through three quarters and led by nine points after 30 minutes.
LSU and Kim Mulkey return Angel Reese and added All-Americans Hailey Van Lith (Louisville) — who the Hokies beat twice last season, including in the ACC Championship Game — and Aneesah Morrow (DePaul). They finished 34-2 (15-1 SEC) in 2022-23 and had a perfect 17-0 record at home in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
It'll be Tech's third trip to Baton Rouge in program history, the first since 2006. The schools have met four times previously:
Dec. 1984 in Blacksburg, Va.: VT 86, LSU 77
Nov. 2001 in Baton Rouge, La.: LSU 66, VT 65
Nov. 2006 in Baton Rouge, La.: LSU 70, VT 40
March 2023 in Dallas, Texas: LSU 79, VT 72
What's more, the matchup with the Tigers falls three weeks after the Hokies meet Caitlin Clark and Iowa in the Ally Tipoff in Charlotte on Thursday, Nov. 9. They're also competing in the inaugural Cayman Islands Classic, which was announced in April and includes LSU, UConn, UCLA, Kansas, Niagara, Tulane and Virginia.
"[Our 2023-24 non-conference schedule will] be a mixture of us playing some tough teams," Tech head coach Kenny Brooks said in April, "but also getting an opportunity for … a group of young kids that need that desperately."
ACC/SEC Men's Challenge Slate:
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.
ACC/SEC Women's Challenge Slate:
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