Aug. 14, 2008

The Villanova Wildcats will meet the University of Texas on Dec. 9 at Madison Square Garden as part of the 14th annual Jimmy V Classic, it was announced on Aug. 13. The `Cats and Longhorns will be the second half of a doubleheader at the Garden following the Davidson vs. West Virginia matchup in the opener. Both games will be broadcast nationally by ESPN.

In addition to that doubleheader, there will also be a women's classic held on Dec. 8 featuring Georgia and Rutgers with proceeds from each event benefiting The V Foundation for Cancer Research. The second annual Jimmy V Week, a week-long initiative across multiple ESPN platforms and programs featuring special content to help raise awareness for cancer research December 3-9, will culminate with the Classics.

The women's game, held at Rutgers University in Piscataway, N.J. for the third consecutive year, will feature national powers Georgia vs. Rutgers at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2. The men's doubleheader, held at the famed Madison Square Garden for the sixth consecutive event, will pit defending Southern Conference champion Davidson vs. BIG EAST power West Virginia at 7 p.m. and perennial Big 12 power Texas vs. BIG EAST force Villanova at 9 p.m., both on ESPN.

Beginning later this month, tickets for the Jimmy V Men's Basketball Classic can be purchased through ticketmaster.com, by calling Ticketmaster at 212-307-7171, or in person at the Madison Square Garden Box Office. Tickets for the Jimmy V Women's Basketball Classic will be available at the Rutgers ticket office (866-445-GORU (4678).

Jimmy V Men's Basketball Classic: Highlights of the 14th annual Jimmy V Mens Basketball Classic showcasing four of the nations elite programs:

All four teams ended the season in the ESPN/USA Today Top 25 poll -- #5 Texas, #9 Davidson, #17 West Virginia and #24 Villanova - and participated in the NCAA Tournament with Texas and Davidson making it to the Elite 8 and West Virginia and Villanova the Sweet 16. Three teams will make their Jimmy V Classic debut: Davidson, West Virginia and Villanova. Texas only other game was a 91-83 loss to Arizona in the 2003 event.

Davidson, led by guard Stephen Curry who averaged 25.9 points per game last year, will play in MSG for the first time since an 81-77 loss to Syracuse in an NIT matchup on March 18, 1972.

West Virginia and Villanova are two of only five teams to reach the Sweet 16 at least three times since 2005 (UCLA, North Carolina and Memphis being the other three). Texas is one of three national programs to advance to at least the Sweet 16 in five of the last seven years.

Villanova and Texas will meet for the third time in New York City. The clubs split a pair of games in 2006 and 2007, with each team winning on its home floor. Texas downed the Wildcats 58-55 on Jan. 20, 2006 in Austin and VU picked up a 76-69 win at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia on Jan. 20, 2007.

Jimmy V Men's Basketball Classic Dinner October 14: The head coaches for all six Classic teams are expected to appear at the 14th annual Jimmy V Basketball Classic Dinner Auction to be held Tuesday, Oct. 14 at New York's Chelsea Piers Pier Sixty. Proceeds from the dinner and auction will benefit The V Foundation to fund essential cancer research. For additional information or to reserve tickets call The V Foundation at 1-800-4JimmyV or log on to www.jimmyv.org.

The V Foundation: The V Foundation for Cancer Research was founded in 1993 by ESPN and the late Jim Valvano, legendary North Carolina State basketball coach and ESPN commentator. Since 1993, the Foundation has raised more than $70 million to fund cancer research grants nationwide. It awards 100 percent of all direct cash donations and net proceeds of events directly to cancer research and related programs. The Foundation, which has received five consecutive top 4-star ratings from Charity Navigator, awards grants through a competitive awards process strictly supervised by a Scientific Review Committee. For more information on The V Foundation or to make a donation, please visit www.jimmyv.org.

The complete 2008-09 Villanova schedule will be announced in September.