Tennessee will head to Blacksburg, Virginia, this winter for a matchup against Virginia Tech in the 2026 SEC/ACC Women’s Basketball Challenge, the Southeastern Conference announced Friday.
The Lady Vols and Hokies are scheduled to meet Dec. 3 at Cassell Coliseum as part of the fourth annual event between the two conferences.
The matchup adds another chapter to a series Tennessee leads 8-4 all-time. However, Virginia Tech has controlled the recent meetings, winning four of the past five contests. Tennessee’s most recent victory in the series came in a 64-58 decision at Virginia Tech on Dec. 5, 2021.
The trip will also mark a return to familiar surroundings for Tennessee coach Kim Caldwell. During the 2024 NCAA Tournament, Caldwell coached her final contest at Marshall before accepting the Tennessee job.
Tennessee enters its fourth SEC/ACC Women’s Basketball Challenge appearance with a 2-1 record in the event. The Lady Vols have won their past two challenge games, including a 65-62 road victory at Stanford last season and a 79-77 home win over Florida State in 2024. Their lone loss came against Notre Dame during the inaugural edition of the challenge in 2023.
The Virginia Tech contest is the third game on Tennessee’s 2026-27 schedule to be publicly announced.
Game times and television assignments will be announced at a later date.
