TAMPA, Fla. — Kennesaw State University and University of South Florida’s basketball teams are starting a new series with one another in honor of the basketball coach who transformed their programs.

Amir Abdur-Rahim died last month after complications during a medical procedure at a Tampa, Florida hospital.

During a memorial service for Abdur-Rahim on Saturday, USF Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly announced the Love Wins Classic, a home-and-home series between the two schools where Abdur-Rahim served as head coach.

Before his death, he was preparing to start his second season as the men’s head basketball coach at USF.

In his fourth year as head coach at KSU, the 2022-2023 men’s basketball team made history by making it to the NCAA March Madness tournament for the first time in the school’s history.

“The two teams he led and transformed are forever better because of him,” Kelly said while making the announcement.