UVA, Villanova announce home-and-home basketball series

The defending regular-season champions of the Atlantic Coast and BIG EAST conferences are set to meet in 2015-16 as part of a two-year agreement between UVA and Villanova, the schools announced on Tuesday (June 16).

In 2015-16, Virginia will host Villanova on Saturday, Dec. 19 at John Paul Jones Arena. The Cavaliers will play the Wildcats at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia in 2016-17.

“We are excited to announce a two-game series with Villanova,” Virginia head coach Tony Bennett said. “Villanova has a storied history and has been one of the premier basketball programs over the past few seasons. I have a lot of respect for coach Jay Wright and his program, and we look forward to a couple of highly-competitive nonconference games.”

“We are really excited to play an outstanding program with a great coach in Tony Bennett,” stated Villanova head coach Jay Wright. “We compete as an academic institution with Virginia and we have so much respect for the basketball program and its tradition of success. This is a great series for Villanova and we’re really looking forward to it.”

The Cavaliers and Wildcats have been two of the most successful programs in the country over the past two seasons. Virginia has won 30 games in each of the past two campaigns and the Cavaliers claimed their second consecutive ACC regular-season title in 2014-15.Villanova established a new school record with 33 victories in 2014-15 while claiming the BIG EAST regular season and tournament titles.The Cavaliers finished No. 8 and Villanova was No. 9 in the final USA Today Coaches’ Poll this season.

Virginia and Villanova last met during the NIT in the 2003-04 season when the Wildcats defeated the Cavaliers 73-63 at The Pavilion in Villanova, Pa. The Cavaliers own a 4-2 advantage over the Wildcats in the all-time series that dates back to 1981.

 

2015-2016 Men’s Basketball Season Ticket Information

Season ticket renewals for the 2015-16 season began on Monday, June 1. The season ticket priority-ordering deadline for renewals is Aug. 7.

Fans interested in purchasing new season tickets should complete the season ticket request form online. Requests for new season tickets will be filled based on Virginia Athletics Foundation Priority Point order beginning Aug. 24.

Season tickets are expected to sell out for UVa’s 15-game home schedule. The ACC will release the complete schedule in late August.

For more information regarding season tickets, fans should contact the Virginia Athletics Ticket Office at 1-800-542-UVA1 (8821). Fans can also purchase tickets online at VirginiaSports.com or in-person at the Virginia Athletics Ticket Office in Bryant Hall at Scott Stadium.