ESPN has finalized the network and time assignments for the 15th annual Big Ten/ACC Challenge Presented by DICK’s Sporting Goods on December 3 and 4. ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU will combine to televise all 12 games of the two-day event matching top college basketball programs playing for conference supremacy and the Commissioners Cup.
Every game will also be available through WatchESPN, accessible online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app, through ESPN on Xbox LIVE to Gold members and on Apple TV to fans who receive their video subscription from an affiliated provider.
All 12 Big Ten teams and 12 of the 15 ACC teams will participate in the 2013 Challenge, including the three newest ACC members Notre Dame, Pittsburgh and Syracuse.
The ACC and Big Ten split last year’s Challenge with six wins each. In the event of a tie, the Commissioner’s Cup remains with the conference that won the previous year, which was the Big Ten in 2011. The ACC holds a 10-3-1 Challenge record, winning the first 10 events (1999-2008) while the Big Ten won the next three (2009-2011).
2013 Big Ten/ACC Challenge schedule:
Tuesday, December 3
7:15 p.m. Indiana at Syracuse, ESPN
7:15 p.m. Illinois at Georgia Tech, ESPN2
7:30 p.m. Penn State at Pittsburgh, ESPNU
9:15 p.m. Michigan at Duke, ESPN
9:15 p.m. Notre Dame at Iowa, ESPN2
9:30 p.m. Florida State at Minnesota, ESPNU
Wednesday, December 4
7:00 p.m. Maryland at Ohio State, ESPN or ESPN2
7:00 p.m. Wisconsin at Virginia, ESPN or ESPN2
7:30 p.m. Northwestern at NC State, ESPNU
9:00 p.m. North Carolina at Michigan State, ESPN
9:00 p.m. Boston College at Purdue, ESPN2
9:30 p.m. Miami at Nebraska, ESPNU
Challenge Notes:
Duke is 21-8 all-time against Michigan, including victories in the 2011 NCAA Tournament and 2011 EA Sports Maui Invitational.
Best Three Out of Five: North Carolina and Michigan State, and Minnesota and Florida State will meet in the Challenge for the fifth time with each program holding a 2-2 record against their opponent.
North Carolina, with an 11-3 overall record against Michigan State, won games in 2008 and 2009. Michigan State won the games in 1999 and 2000.
Northwestern and NC State will square off in the Challenge for the third time. Northwestern won in 2009 and NC State in 2002.
The ACC (.658) and the Big Ten (.612) rank first and third, respectively, among conferences in all-time NCAA Tournament winning percentage.
Since 1988, the ACC (23) and the Big Ten (19) have provided 42 of the 96 teams in the Final Four and have won a combined 10 national titles.