(Photo Credit: Asbury Park Press)
Indiana will be facing the UConn Huskies in the 2019 Jimmy V. Classic hosted in New York’s Madison Square Garden. It was announced today via the Indiana Men’s Basketball Twitter account. Another important piece of the 2019-2020 schedule has been revealed, and as always you can find the latest information on our schedule page.
The match-up takes place December 10th, 2019 and will be broadcasted by ESPN.
There are now three known non-conference games for the 2019 season. Indiana will be facing Arkansas at home with their home-and-away contract. The Hoosiers will also play Notre Dame this year in the annual Crossroads Classic hosted in Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Today’s announcement represents the third known non-conference opponent.
Indiana is currently 2-0 in the Jimmy V. Classic where they have won a game in each decade:
Archie Miller and the Hoosiers do not have great memories of their last game at Madison Square Garden. Playing in their first match up of the 2017-2018 Big Ten Tournament, the Hoosiers were upset and blown out of the arena against a Rutgers team that essentially had home-court advantage given the proximity of the venue to their school.
Notably, the last battle between the Hoosiers and Huskies took place in November of 2013 and was also hosted at Madison Square Garden. That match up determined the final 2K Classic Tournament winner, which ended up being the Huskies as they defeated Indiana with a final score of 59 to 58. Yogi Ferrell’s 19 points were not enough to overcome Shabazz Napier’s 27 point performance.
Indiana and UConn have met a total of 8 times in the histories of the two programs. The Huskies have had the better end of the match-up as they have won 6 of the 8 total games. Those wins include a 1998 victory in the Verizon Center that moved the Richard Hamilton-led UConn team past Indiana to the 1998 NCAA Sweet Sixteen.
Indiana’s two wins against the Huskies took place in the 2006-2007 season and the 1996-1997 season.
The Jimmy V. Classic is an annual game organized by ESPN that is intended as a fund raiser during Jimmy V week on ESPN. The games are intended to raise awareness for cancer research and is named after legendary basketball head coach Jim Valvano.
Indiana has previously participated in this event twice where they defeated North Carolina in 1999 and they defeated Pittsburgh in 2009.
Last year, the four match ups included Florida, West Virginia, Oklahoma, and Notre Dame. The Gators defeated the Mountaineers and the Sooners defeated the Fighting Irish.
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ESPN Release on the V Foundation
The V Foundation for Cancer Research is dedicated to declaring victory over cancer. ESPN and the late Jim Valvano, legendary North Carolina State basketball coach and ESPN commentator, founded it in 1993. Since 1993, the Foundation has funded more than $225 million in cancer research grants nationwide. It awards 100 percent of all direct cash donations to cancer research and related programs. Due to generous donors, the Foundation has an endowment that covers administrative expenses. The Foundation awards peer-reviewed grants through a competitive awards process vetted by a Scientific Advisory Committee.