The UNC men’s basketball team will host Alabama at the Dean Smith Center and the women’s team will host Kentucky at Carmichael Arena as part of the ACC-SEC Challenge next season. The men’s matchup is scheduled for December 4 and the women’s matchup for December 5.

The Tar Heels and Crimson Tide have met in each of the past two seasons, with Alabama winning both matchups. Nate Oats’ team won a four-overtime marathon as part of the Phil Knight Invitational during the Thanksgiving holiday in 2022, and then No. 4 seed Alabama sprung an upset against No. 1 seed Carolina in the 2024 NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16.

The two programs are also connected on the recruiting trail, as Chapel Hill native and Seaforth High School standout Jarin Stevenson turned down a scholarship offer from Carolina to reclassify up a year and join the Crimson Tide before the 2023-24 season. UNC and Alabama both also recruited Rutgers’ Clifford Omoruyi out of the transfer portal; Omoruyi eventually picked the Tide.

Alabama returns several key members of its 2024 team which made it to the Final Four after beating the Tar Heels, such as Stevenson, guard Mark Sears and forward Grant Nelson. Nelson scored 24 points in the Sweet 16 matchup.

On the women’s side, the matchup with Kentucky will also bring familiar foes back to Chapel Hill. The Wildcats hired former Virginia Tech head coach Kenny Brooks to the same position in Lexington this offseason, while also bringing former Hokie point guard Georgia Amoore from the transfer portal. In addition, former Tar Heel Teonni Key will be making her return to Carmichael as a member of the Wildcats.

This will be the first meeting between UNC and Kentucky since Courtney Banghart took over as head coach. The teams last met in the 2018-19 season, with the Wildcats winning 85-75.

 

Featured image via Todd Melet

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