In a highly anticipated move, the University of Maryland and the University of Virginia have announced the revival of their men’s basketball rivalry series. This renewed four-game, home-and-away series will kick off in the 2025-26 season in Charlottesville and will continue until the 2028-29 season, alternating locations between Virginia’s home court and Maryland’s in College Park.
The announcement was met with enthusiasm from both programs, especially Maryland’s head coach, Kevin Willard, who expressed his excitement about reigniting this historic rivalry. “The University of Maryland and the University of Virginia share a rich basketball history, and we’re thrilled to bring this series back to life,” said Willard in a statement. “Looking ahead, the rekindling of rivalries like this, as well as our upcoming series with Georgetown, means a lot to our fans.”
The two schools, located just across the Potomac River from each other, have faced off 184 times since their first meeting in 1913. Maryland currently holds the lead in the series with a 108-76 record. Their most recent matchup took place in 2018 as part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
Virginia’s head coach, Tony Bennett, shared his respect for Willard and the Maryland program, stating, “I have great respect for Coach Willard and everything he’s done. We’ve had some incredible games with Maryland in the past, and we’re looking forward to another competitive series.”
This basketball revival comes just as the two schools prepare to conclude their football rivalry series, with no future games scheduled beyond this weekend’s final matchup in Charlottesville.
Since taking over the Maryland program two seasons ago, Coach Willard has emphasized the importance of regional rivalries. In addition to Virginia, Maryland will also face Georgetown in a four-game series starting next season, further solidifying their commitment to rebuilding historic rivalries within the region.
