UNC and NC State to face off in Greensboro
Tobacco Road Classic will debut Dec. 15
North Carolina head men's basketball coach Michael Malone and N.C. State head men's basketball coach Justin Gainey laugh following an announcement of the Tobacco Road Classic on Wednesday, Aug. 19, at the First Horizon Coliseum in Greensboro. The Tobacco Road Classic will feature a nonconference basketball game between N.C. State and North Carolina at First Horizon Coliseum on Dec. 15.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
UNC and NC State's men's basketball teams will return to historical roots this season.
The rivals will play a neutral site, nonconference game at the First Horizon Coliseum in Greensboro on Dec. 15 in the first edition of the "Tobacco Road Classic." Tipoff will be announced at a later date.
Tickets go on sale Sept. 10 at Ticketmaster.com and the Coliseum's box office.
It's a two-year deal, Coliseum and sponsor officials announced at a media conference on Wednesday afternoon, so the squads will play again next December in Greensboro during the 2027-28 season.
Last year, and for the first time since 1919, the Tar Heels and Wolfpack only played once in Raleigh instead of a homeand-home series due to restructuring of the ACC schedule. In 2026, the two rivals were scheduled to play once in Chapel Hill in conference play.
"We like traditions, and we like rivalries," said Chip Overbey of Old Dominion Freight Line, the sponsor of the game. "We don't want to see that tradition end. We want these schools to play each other twice a year because there's bragging rights."
Both coaches are new to the job, but they're acquainted with the history.
Michael Malone, who coached in the NBA for 12 years and won an NBA title with the Denver Nuggets in 2023 before taking his post at UNC, has been studying. NBA rivalries weren't as intense as this one, he said, so he's had a lot to learn.
"Being in Chapel Hill for four months and talking to people around the program and around the state, you realize that this game matters," Malone said on Wednesday. "Every game matters, but some matter a little bit more. This is one of those games."
He has also been studying up on Greensboro, particularly UNC's accomplishments in the city.
The Tar Heels are 128-40 all-time in Greensboro and 120-36 at the Coliseum, the most by North Carolina in any off-campus arena.
"I know back in Chapel Hill I coach in the Dean Smith Center," Malone said. "I know that Coach Smith won seven ACC championships in this building, so I wasn't sure if this was also going to be called the Dean Smith Center."
Malone will make his college coaching debut in Greensboro on Oct. 9 for a preseason game against Southern California, then return to the city for his first rivalry game.
Justin Gainey, former captain of the Wolfpack, didn't need to do as much studying. He has his own history with Greensboro.
Gainey, a native of High Point, attended Greensboro Day School and is only the third basketball player to have his number retired there. During his high school career, he played in the Coliseum's Little Four Tournament.
"Coming back to Greensboro, coming back home, for me, is going to be a special moment," Gainey said. "I'm excited for our fans to come here and show up and have a big impact and presence as December comes."
The December contest will be the first time the rivals have played in a nonconference game since 1979, when UNC and NC State played in the Big 4 Tournament, with Duke and Wake Forest making up the other two teams.
From 1967-1998, the teams played 14 times in Greensboro, eight games in the Big Four and six in the ACC Tournament.
"The fans have spoken, the administrators have spoken, the legislators have spoken," Malone said. "This game matters."
Caroline Wills is a sportswriter for the Winston-Salem Journal and greensboro news & record, primarily covering college and high school sports. She is a 2025 graduate of unC Chapel Hill and first worked as an intern for the n&r (2024) and Hickory daily record (2023).
