April 15, 2008

EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State men's basketball team will play North Carolina at Ford Field in Detroit on Wednesday, Dec. 3 in the 10th-annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge. This will be Michigan State's second game at Ford Field, having previously played Kentucky at "The BasketBowl" on Dec. 13, 2003, and will mark the sixth-straight season that MSU has played a regular-season game in the Detroit area. Ticket information will be available later this summer.

"I am thrilled to have another opportunity to play at Ford Field," said Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo. "`The BasketBowl' was a great experience for everyone involved and this is sure to be another memory maker. Add a North Carolina team that could potentially be the No. 1 team in the nation and you have a contest that could be one of the most talked-about games of the college basketball season.

"But even bigger than the basketball game is the opportunity to showcase our University to all of our alums and fans in Detroit and across southeast Michigan, as well as throughout the country with the exposure this game is sure to generate."

The Spartans and Tar Heels last met in the second round of the 2007 NCAA Tournament in Winston-Salem, N.C., with UNC claiming an 81-67 victory. North Carolina leads the all-time series with Michigan State, 7-3. The Spartans, however, hold a 2-0 advantage in games played as part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. In the inaugural challenge in 1999, MSU defeated North Carolina, 86-76, in Chapel Hill. In 2000, the Spartans were a 77-64 victor over the Tar Heels at the Breslin Center.

Michigan State is 5-3 in ACC/Big Ten Challenge history. Following the initial two games against North Carolina, a 2001 meeting with Virginia at the Richmond Coliseum was cancelled due to unplayable floor conditions. In 2002, MSU defeated Virginia, 82-75, in East Lansing. The Spartans then lost two games to Duke, 72-50 in 2003 in East Lansing and 81-74 in Durham in 2004. In 2005, Michigan State defeated Georgia Tech, 88-86, in East Lansing. Boston College defeated MSU, 65-58, in Chestnut Hill, Mass., in 2006. Last year, the Spartans were impressive in an 81-58 win over North Carolina State on Nov. 28.

North Carolina advanced to the 2008 Final Four, and finished the season with a 36-3 record, capturing the ACC regular-season and tournament championships. The Tar Heels could return their top eight scorers and all five starters from last year's squad, including National Player of the Year Tyler Hansbrough.

This is the fourth-straight season that all 11 Big Ten squads will participate in the challenge. ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU will televise all 11 games, marking the seventh consecutive year that every game will be televised nationally. Since 2000, the two conferences have combined to make 15 Final Four appearances and captured four of the last nine NCAA Championships.

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