CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia will travel to Mississippi State on Dec. 3 (Thursday) in the fourth edition of the SEC/ACC Women’s Basketball Challenge, ESPN announced Friday (June 5).
Start times and broadcast designations will be released at a later date.
Heading to Starkville for the SEC/ACC Challenge ✈️
— Virginia Women's Basketball (@UVAWomensHoops) June 5, 2026
📰 https://t.co/RK1LcznlSe#GoHoos pic.twitter.com/PSLcxiPKvP
This will mark the fourth meeting between the Cavaliers and Bulldogs and will mark Virginia’s second road meeting with Mississippi State. UVA is 0-3 in the all-time series with the Bulldogs.
The creation of the SEC/ACC Challenge in 2023 marked the end of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, which ESPN established with the two conferences in 1999 for men’s basketball as a first-of-its-kind event. It expanded to include women’s matchups in 2007. SEC women’s basketball conducted a challenge with the Big 12 from 2014 to 2021.
Virginia enters the 2026-27 season coming off the program’s first Sweet Sixteen appearance since 2000 while becoming the first-ever team to appear in a regional semifinal after playing in the First Four. All-ACC senior point guard, Kymora Johnson, returns for the 2026-27 season after a campaign in which she set the program’s single game, single game and career three-point records while climbing to fifth in career assists and ninth in career points at UVA.
Last season, the Bulldogs went 18-13 overall with a 5-11 mark in conference play, good for 12th in the SEC standings.
2026 SEC/ACC Challenge
Wednesday, Dec. 2
Louisville at Texas
Miami at Florida
North Carolina vs LSU
NC State at Ole Miss
SMU vs Georgia
Stanford at Auburn
Thursday, Dec. 3
Cal vs Texas A&M
Clemson at Kentucky
Duke vs South Carolina
Florida State vs Missouri
Georgia Tech at Alabama
Notre Dame at Vanderbilt
Syracuse vs Oklahoma
Virginia at Mississippi State
Virginia Tech vs Tennessee
Wake Forest at Arkansas