Maryland basketball is less than one month away from kicking off year three of the Kevin Willard era, but as expected, the Terps will have a marquee addition to its future schedule.
Maryland joins Arizona, Notre Dame, Providence, Ole Miss, BYU and VCU in the 2026 Maui Invitational, per college basketball analyst Jon Rothstein, with no timetable on an official announcement. The eighth team remains to be determined, per Rothstein. Maryland, who has not appeared in the event since 2009, is 6-6 all-time in the event. Maryland is 13-11 all-time vs. Providence, Notre Dame and VCU while Arizona has won all three matchups with the last matchup back in 2001 as the Wildcats secured a 71-67 win over the then-second ranked Terps in the Coaches vs. Cancer.
Maryland has been expected to head to Maui in 2026, while head coach Kevin Willard previously noted that former head coach Mark Turgeon positioned the program into the Hawaii non-conference event after Maryland was included in the 2023 Asheville Championship.
“This was the last round that Mark [Turgeon] had scheduled and he scheduled because it helped us, help get into Maui in 2026,” Willard said last year.
The 2026 invitational is the latest expected non-conference matchup as Maryland adds more optimism to its future schedule. Maryland will host Virginia in year two of its four-year series announced this summer, while Georgetown will host Maryland in year two of its four-year series also announced this summer.
Meanwhile, Maryland is set to begin a home-and-home vs. Marquette on Nov. 15, 2024 at the Xfinity Center before heading to Milwaukee next season.
Maryland will kick off its 2024-25 season on Nov. 4 vs. Manhattan.
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