MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia will visit Tennessee in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge next season, pairing teams that presume to rank among the preseason top 10.
Coming off its second consecutive Sweet 16 appearance, West Virginia returns three starters and six key players from a 25-11 team. Plus there’s a top-30
Tennessee shared the SEC regular-season title this past season and finished 26-9 with a second-round NCAA upset loss to Loyola-Chicago. Coach Rick Barnes figures to have another stacked team, returning seven of his top eight scorers, including conference player of the year Grant Williams (15.2 points and 6.0 rebounds).
West Virginia leads 5-3 in a series where the teams haven’t met since November 2007 during Bob Huggins’ first season as Mountaineers’ coach. WVU hasn’t played at the 21,678-seat Thompson-Boling Arena since December 2001.
The Challenge is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019, remaining a high-profile break from conference play.
Other matchups in the 2019 SEC/Big 12 Challenge:
Kansas at Kentucky
Alabama at Baylor
Kansas State at Texas A&M
Vanderbilt at Oklahoma
Florida at TCU
Texas at Georgia
Arkansas at Texas Tech
Iowa State at Ole Miss
South Carolina at Oklahoma State