Maryland Hosts No. 6 Virginia for the 186th Meeting in Their Rivalry
Maryland hosts No. 6 Virginia at 8 p.m. ET Friday at XFINITY Center. The teams have played 185 times, more often than Maryland has faced any other opponent. Virginia won the last three. For a sense of what the Terps have been missing in that stretch, go back to the last time they beat the Cavaliers, on a March afternoon in this same building.
On March 9, 2014, Maryland played its final ACC regular-season game against a Virginia team that had won 13 straight. The Terps took the fifth-ranked Cavaliers to overtime and won 75–69. When Maryland moved to the Big Ten, the rivalry lost its place on the annual conference schedule. The next three games in the series took place across more than a decade.
A Rivalry Measured in Years
Virginia beat Maryland in December 2014, then again in November 2018. Last December the Cavaliers won 80–72. Maryland’s game center still gives the Terps a 108–77 series lead going into Friday. Both sets of numbers belong on the same page. The home crowd remembers a rivalry Maryland often won, while today’s players are trying to produce the program’s first victory in the series since that overtime finish.
Where Maryland Can Start
Pharrel Payne enters averaging 20.5 points and shooting 75 percent from the floor. After scoring 28 in the loss to Georgetown, the Maryland center offers a reason to watch the first few half-court possessions closely. Can the guards get him a catch near the basket before Virginia forces him farther out? Andre Mills, who led Maryland in its season opener against Bucknell, gives the Cavaliers another scorer to account for.
Maryland’s rivalry notes list a red-out for the home crowd, with a Y2K theme. Peacock and NBC Sports Network are scheduled to carry the game. Fans can also follow the live statistics through the university’s game center.
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