LEX 18 — Basketball season is quickly approaching, and the Kentucky men's basketball program is helping Big Blue Nation prepare ahead of Mark Pope third season at the helm. UK Athletics released tipoff times and TV designations Wednesday afternoon, just over one week out from UK's first exhibition.
The Wildcats are slated to play 35 games prior to postseason play, comprised of 32 regular-season matchups and three exhibitions. The unofficial contests will pit the Cats against Little Rock on October 16, Texas Tech on October 23 and Central Florida on October 28.
All three exhibitions will be played inside Rupp Arena, with the first two both streaming on the SEC Network+. UK's exhibition against UCF will be on the SEC Network.
The season will officially begin with weeknight games against Manhattan and James Madison on November 3rd and 6th, before a trip to the Windy City on Tuesday, November 10. That's where the Cats will face the Kansas Jayhawks in the annual Champions Classic event, with tipoff set for approximately 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
"If you need a stopper, Zoom is going to be that guy at the point guard spot"
— BBN Tonight (@BBNTonight) October 7, 2026
Jack "Goose" Givens breaks down what he saw from Kentucky Men's Basketball pro day, including what the Wildcats defense could look like. pic.twitter.com/drFC58zNuq
That's not the only late-night viewing fans are in for the season. The Cats will host Wichita State for a 9 p.m. tip on Black Friday, as well as 9 p.m. road games at Ole Miss and at Vanderbilt in February.
There are also a handful of matinee matchups, including a pair of SEC road contests at noon and two non-conference home games at 1 p.m.
Other notable matchups in Lexington include: UK vs. Louisville on Saturday, December 12 at 4 p.m., UK vs. Tennessee on January 23 at 2 p.m., UK vs. Alabama on February 6 at 2 p.m., and UK vs. Arkansas on February 20 at 6 or 6:30 p.m.
In total, the Wildcats will play 22 home games, ten road games, and three neutral-site games (Kansas, Indiana and North Carolina). Kentucky will play 17 games against teams that played in last season's NCAA Tournament, including two of the exhibitions.
The schedule is below. All times listed are Eastern:
| Date | Opponent | Location | TV Network | Tip Time |
| Oct. 16 | Little Rock (exhibition) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SECN+ | 7 p.m. |
| Oct. 23 | Texas Tech (exhibition) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SECN+ | 7 p.m. |
| Oct. 28 | UCF (exhibition) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SEC Network | 6 p.m. |
| Nov. 3 | Manhattan | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SECN+ | 7 p.m. |
| Nov. 6 | James Madison | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SEC Network | 7 p.m. |
| Nov. 10 | vs. Kansas (Champions Classic) | United Center (Chicago) | ESPN | 9:30 p.m. |
| Nov. 13 | Northern Arizona | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SECN+ | 7 p.m. |
| Nov. 16 | Grambling State | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SECN+ | 7 p.m. |
| Nov. 20 | vs. Indiana | Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis) | CBS | 8 p.m. |
| Nov. 27 | Wichita State | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | ESPN2 | 9 p.m. |
| Dec. 2 | at Virginia (ACC/SEC Challenge) | John Paul Jones Arena (Charlottesville) | ESPN | 7:15 p.m. |
| Dec. 5 | Appalachian State | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SECN+ | 1 p.m. |
| Dec. 8 | Bryant | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | ESPN2 | 7:30 p.m. |
| Dec. 12 | Louisville | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | ABC | 4 p.m. |
| Dec. 19 | vs. North Carolina (CBS Sports Classic) | Madison Square Garden (New York) | CBS | 2:30 p.m. |
| Dec. 22 | Sacred Heart | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SEC Network | 1 p.m. |
| Dec. 28 | Gardner-Webb | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SEC Network | 7 p.m. |
| Jan. 2 | at Oklahoma (SEC) | Lloyd Noble Center (Norman) | ESPN or ESPN2 | 12 p.m. |
| Jan. 5 | Ole Miss (SEC) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | ESPN or ESPN2 | 7 p.m. |
| Jan. 9 | at Missouri (SEC) | Mizzou Arena (Columbia) | ESPN2 | 4 p.m. |
| Jan. 13 | LSU (SEC) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SEC Network | 7 p.m. |
| Jan. 16 | Vanderbilt (SEC) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | ESPN or ESPN2 | 4 p.m. |
| Jan. 20 | at Mississippi State (SEC) | Humphrey Coliseum (Starkville) | SEC Network | 8:30 p.m. |
| Jan. 23 | Tennessee (SEC) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU | 2 p.m. |
| Jan. 30 | at Texas (SEC) | Moody Center (Austin) | ESPN/ESPN2 | 12 p.m. |
| Feb. 2 | at Ole Miss (SEC) | The Sandy and John Black Pavilion (Oxford) | ESPN/ESPN2 | 9 p.m. |
| Feb. 6 | Alabama (SEC) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | ESPN/ESPN2 | 2 p.m. |
| Feb. 10 | South Carolina (SEC) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | SEC Network | 8 p.m. |
| Feb. 13 | at Tennessee (SEC) | Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center (Knoxville) | ESPN | 4 p.m. |
| Feb. 16 | at Georgia (SEC) | Stegeman Coliseum (Athens) | ESPN/ESPN2 | 7 p.m. |
| Feb. 20 | Arkansas (SEC) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | ESPN | 6 or 6:30 p.m. |
| Feb. 23 | at Vanderbilt (SEC) | Memorial Gymnasium (Nashville) | ESPN/ESPN2 | 9 p.m. |
| Feb. 27 | Auburn (SEC) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | ESPN/ESPN2 | 4 or 4:30 p.m. |
| March 3 | Texas A&M (SEC) | Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center | ESPN2/ESPNU | 7 p.m. |
| March 6 | at Florida (SEC) | Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center (Gainesville) | ESPN | 4 or 4:30 p.m. |
Season ticket holders are reminded the exhibition games vs. Little Rock, Texas Tech and UCF are included in their season ticket packages.
A limited number of season tickets are available and single-game tickets for the first 10 home games also are available.
For more information, call the ticket office at 859-257-1818 or go to website https://ukathletics.com/ticketing/mens-basketball/.
For more on Kentucky basketball and all of the Wildcats, join us on BBN Tonight, airing weeknights at 7:30 p.m. on the official station for UK Athletics, LEX 18.
