Ohio State Will Play Virginia in Nashville This Season
8/7/2025 3:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
The game will be played on February 14 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State will play a non-conference game in the middle of the Big Ten season this year as the Buckeyes will take on Virginia on February 14, 2026, in Nashville. The game, which is being hosted by Intersport, a leading sports marketing and event management agency, will be played at Bridgestone Arena in downtown Nashville. The game time and TV assignment will be announced at a later date.
"We pushed for a high-level non-conference game in February, and we certainly got that against Virginia," Ohio State head coach Jake Diebler said. "As we go through the stretch run of Big Ten play, this game will provide us with a valuable big game, neutral site, and NCAA tournament type feel. We are thankful for the work Intersport did to help execute this game and look forward to working with them."
Tickets for the event are set to go on sale Dec. 10, with a 24-hour presale set for Dec. 9. Fans interested in earning presale access and learning more about the event should register online at www.bit.ly/25NashvilleShowdown.
Ohio State and Virginia will be meeting for just the seventh time with the series knotted up at 3-3. The Buckeyes won the first three games in the series in 1931, 1932 and 1980 while the Cavaliers have won the most recent meetings in 1981, 2015 and 2016. The last two games both came as part of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
The games in the home-and-home series in 1980 and 1981 also came in the middle of both teams' conference schedules in January. Carter Scott led the No. 4 Buckeyes to a 70-65 victory in Columbus in 1980, scoring 21 points while Clark Kellogg chipped in with 11 points and 14 rebounds. Ralph Sampson then scored 40 and grabbed 16 rebounds to push No. 2 Virginia past the Buckeyes 89-73 in Charlottesville the following year.
"We pushed for a high-level non-conference game in February, and we certainly got that against Virginia," Ohio State head coach Jake Diebler said. "As we go through the stretch run of Big Ten play, this game will provide us with a valuable big game, neutral site, and NCAA tournament type feel. We are thankful for the work Intersport did to help execute this game and look forward to working with them."
Tickets for the event are set to go on sale Dec. 10, with a 24-hour presale set for Dec. 9. Fans interested in earning presale access and learning more about the event should register online at www.bit.ly/25NashvilleShowdown.
Ohio State and Virginia will be meeting for just the seventh time with the series knotted up at 3-3. The Buckeyes won the first three games in the series in 1931, 1932 and 1980 while the Cavaliers have won the most recent meetings in 1981, 2015 and 2016. The last two games both came as part of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
The games in the home-and-home series in 1980 and 1981 also came in the middle of both teams' conference schedules in January. Carter Scott led the No. 4 Buckeyes to a 70-65 victory in Columbus in 1980, scoring 21 points while Clark Kellogg chipped in with 11 points and 14 rebounds. Ralph Sampson then scored 40 and grabbed 16 rebounds to push No. 2 Virginia past the Buckeyes 89-73 in Charlottesville the following year.
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