Saturday's Virginia-North Carolina Basketball Game Time Has Been Moved

Due to weather concerns, the game time for Saturday's matchup between North Carolina and Virginia has been moved up

Jan 17, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Virginia Cavaliers head coach Ryan Odom talks with center Johann Grunloh (17) during the first half against the SMU Mustangs at Moody Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Virginia Basketball has a huge matchup this weekend at home against North Carolina and the school announced today that the game time has been moved.

Due to the forecast of a winter storm hitting the Mid-Atlantic region this weekend, the University of Virginia’s men’s basketball game vs. North Carolina on Saturday (Jan. 24) will tip off at noon instead of 2 p.m. as previously scheduled. The game will be televised on ESPN2 and broadcast on ESPN Radio and the Virginia Sports Radio Network.

In addition, the Tony Bennett court dedication has been postponed and rescheduled for the men’s basketball home game against Miami on Saturday, Feb. 21 at John Paul Jones Arena.

🚨 TIME CHANGE: Due to this weekend’s weather forecast, the game against UNC will now tip off at Noon Saturday and will be televised on ESPN2. The Tony Bennett court dedication has been rescheduled to the game against Miami, Saturday 2/21.

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— Virginia Men's Basketball (@UVAMensHoops) January 22, 2026

Big Time Game

Jan 17, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Virginia Cavaliers guard Jacari White (6) grabs a rebound in front of SMU Mustangs center Jaden Toombs (10) during the second half at Moody Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

You can make the argument that Virginia and North Carolina are the biggest threats to Duke in the ACC and Saturday's result could be huge when it comes to the standings at the end of the season.

After the victory aginst SMU on Saturday, UVA head coach Ryan Odom reflected on the road victories that his team has gotten to start the season:

“I mean, it's huge, you know, to win on the road. Every win on the road is like gold and this particular group understands that if you want to compete at the highest level of the ACC and compete, you know, for a championship, you have to win games on the road. The eventual champion will do that. know we're not playing, you know, a ton of teams twice and you have one shot at a lot, you know, the majority of the teams that you're going to play, whether it's at home or on the road. So you just want to put your best forward best foot forward in each of those opportunities. Then you learn from it. Whether you win or you lose, you go home and figure out, okay, where are the areas, what are the things that we need to tweak a little bit to continue to improve ,because that's the most important thing. We've got to get better over the course of the season.” 

The SMU game was tight for the majority of the afternoon, but it showed that the Cavaliers are capable of winning that type of game.

“I think just the overall execution. I thought our guys did a nice job. We got to the free throw line. Made our free throws, you know, when we needed to. Got the stops when we needed to. Key rebounds. I think that that's what really what it comes down to. Can you get the stop when you need it? Can you get the bucket when you need it? I thought our guys just did really well with that tonight.” 

Virginia is playing well right now and you could argue that they are the biggest threat to Duke in the ACC. A win over the Tar Heels on Saturday would continue their momentum.