Pitt, Penn State women’s basketball will play in ACC/Big Ten Challenge

Pitt fans are anticipating the Sept. 15 football game between the Panthers and Penn State’s Nittany Lions. But students will get another chance to see the two rivals face off on Dec. 5, when the schools’ women’s basketball teams will play in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

The December tournament pits teams from the ACC against teams from the Big Ten. Like the football matchup, Penn State will host the game, so only the more die-hard Panthers fans will attend the non-conference game at Bryce Jordan Center.

“The ACC/Big Ten Challenge is always a highlight of the non-conference schedule for us and being matched up against Penn State this season makes it even more special for us,” women’s basketball coach Lance White said in a press release announcing the game Monday.

The two teams don’t play every year. Pitt’s women’s basketball team last faced Penn State’s in the 2017-18 season, a game that resulted in a 59-48 victory for the Nittany Lions. The last time Pitt’s women’s basketball team won against Penn State was in 2008, when the Panthers beat the Nittany Lions 80-59.

This will be Pitt’s sixth year in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge since joining the conference in 2013. The women Panthers currently have a 2-3 record in the past five challenges, winning last year’s game against Northwestern.