There’s been a change in plans for the UK-Indiana basketball game in 2026
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Game moved to Nov. 20 from the originally scheduled Dec. 27.
- UK-IU matchup remains scheduled for Lucas Oil Stadium despite date shift.
- Schedule change increases early nonconference difficulty for Kentucky.
The men’s basketball game between Kentucky and the Indiana Hoosiers is still happening, but it’s been moved up on the 2026-27 schedule.
The Cats’ game against IU is now set for Friday, Nov. 20, a shift of several weeks from the original agreement, which called for Mark Pope’s team to face the Hoosiers on Sunday, Dec. 27.
Kentucky and Indiana will still play in Lucas Oil Stadium, the home of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts, who are set to host the Cincinnati Bengals on that late December weekend, according to the league’s 2026 schedule. The Colts-Bengals game could take place on either Dec. 26 or 27, and the final date won’t be set until after the season begins, leading to the change for the UK-IU game.
Indiana is ranked No. 21 in the latest preseason Top 25 rankings from CBS Sports, and the schedule change will amp up the difficulty for the early portion of Kentucky’s non-conference slate.
UK is already set to play Kansas in the Champions Classic in Chicago on Nov. 10, and the Cats will also face an ACC opponent as part of the SEC’s series with that league. The ACC/SEC Challenge games are typically played the week after Thanksgiving, which would put them on Dec. 1 and 2 this year. UK’s ACC opponent is likely to be announced next month, and that matchup is expected to be a road game for the Cats.
That would be three difficult matchups away from Rupp Arena in the first four weeks of the 2026-27 season.
Kentucky is not currently ranked in the CBS Sports preseason Top 25, though the Cats did get starting center Malachi Moreno back from the NBA draft Sunday night, and Mark Pope is still in pursuit of top transfer Milan Momcilovic, who has not yet announced his stay-or-go decision as the Wednesday night withdrawal deadline looms.
Kentucky will also have nonconference games against North Carolina (Dec. 19 in Madison Square Garden) and Louisville (TBA in Rupp Arena). UK and Gonzaga canceled the final two games of their six-year agreement last week. The Zags were scheduled to play in Rupp during the 2026-27 prior to that decision.
UK and Indiana agreed to a four-game deal that began last season with a 72-60 victory for the Cats in Lexington. The Hoosiers will return to Rupp in 2027, and Kentucky will play in Bloomington in 2028, the first visit to IU’s home arena since 2011, when Kentucky — the eventual national champions — lost its only regular season game en route to a 38-2 record.
The full 2026-27 schedule will be released later this year.
This story was originally published May 26, 2026 at 10:50 AM.
