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Louisville Report

Louisville Men's Basketball Releases 2026-27 Schedule

Louisville released its 2026-27 schedule on Wednesday afternoon, headlined by a matchup with defending national champions Michigan on Dec. 5 in Detroit.
Creighton Harley|
Mar 19, 2026; Buffalo, NY, USA; The Louisville Cardinals mascot performs during the second half against the South Florida Bulls during a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Keybank Center. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images
Mar 19, 2026; Buffalo, NY, USA; The Louisville Cardinals mascot performs during the second half against the South Florida Bulls during a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Keybank Center. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Six weeks from today the Louisville Basketball team will take the court to face Kansas in Phog Allen Fieldhouse for their first of two exhibitions. 

Thanks to the release of the ACC conference slate today, the entire schedule is complete for the Cards.  A tough out of conference stretch that spans nationwide from mid-November to mid-December highlights an eagerly anticipated season. 

That Wednesday night showdown (Oct.21) in Lawrence will be the return trip of a home-home exhibition series between the Cards and the Jayhawks.  Kansas won in the Yum! Center 90-82 and now Cardinal Flory Bidunga had 14 points going 6-7 from the field.  The Jayhawks add Louisville native and blue-chip prospect Tyran Stokes to make for a juicy matchup.  

The following Wednesday (Oct. 28) the Cards host Mercyhurst in the second exhibition. 

The regular season opener for the 113th season of Cardinal basketball sees Chattanooga coming to the KFC Yum! Center on Monday, Nov. 2.  It will be played as the second game of a doubleheader with the women playing Bellarmine that afternoon. 

Louisville stays at home to face Morehead State on Saturday, Nov 7.

After a week off, the Cards travel to the FedEx Forum to face longtime rival Memphis on Sunday, Nov. 15.  Louisville leads the all-time series 55-36 and beat the Tigers 99-73 last December. 

The Ville's last home game of November will be a Thursday matchup with the Stetson Hatters on Nov. 19. 

The Cards head to Las Vegas for Thanksgiving week amongst a loaded field for the Players Era 16 Tournament.  Louisville opens play against Texas Tech on Tuesday, Nov. 24 in Michelob ULTRA Arena followed by either Oregon or St. John’s on Thursday, Nov. 26 and a third game on Friday, Nov. 27.  The possible opponents for that game are Tennessee, Maryland, San Diego State or Iowa State. 

The Red Raiders have beaten the Cards twice in neutral site matchups since 2019 in their only 2 meetings, with the last one being a 70-38 thrashing in the 2022 Maui Invitational.   The possibility of facing St. John’s & head coach Rick Pitino, assistant coach Peyton Siva and assistant coach Steve Massielo in the next round should intrigue Cardinal fans.

If the Cards were to win the first two games in Las Vegas, they would play a standalone championship game on Saturday, Nov. 28 against the winner of the other side of the field.  The winner of the field will receive an NIL prize in “the millions”.   Louisville is 68-41 all time against the field in the Players Era 16. 

The Cards will return home for the ACC/SEC Challenge and face the Texas Longhorns on Tuesday, Dec. 1.  The Longhorns are led by Coach Sean Miller and advanced to the Sweet 16 last year.

That Saturday, Dec. 5 the Cards head to Motown and face the defending national champion, Michigan, on Saturday, Dec. 5.  In 2019, the No. 1 ranked Cards beat No. 4 Michigan in 2019, 58-43.  Michigan beat Louisville in the 2nd round of the 2017 NCAA tournament in Indianapolis.  Of course, the matchup with the highest stake in the series was the Cardinals 82-76 victory over the Wolverines in the 2013 NCAA Championship with Luke Hancock bringing home MOP honors. 

The Cards get a week off before they head to Lexington to face arch-rival Kentucky on Saturday Nov. 19 in the 59th matchup of the Battle of the Bluegrass.  Coach Pat Kelsey and the Cards beat the Cats 96-88 last season.  Mikel Brown Jr., a first-round pick by the Brooklyn Nets, scored 29 points.     

Louisville will host Long Island on Wednesday, Dec. 16 and Eastern Michigan on Saturday, Dec. 19.  Long Island made the tournament in March and fell to 1-seed Arizona 92-58 in the first round. 

ACC play will open at Virginia Tech on Wednesday, Dec.30.  The Cards lead the series with the Hokies 38-12 and held a 17-game winning streak in the series that spanned from 1992-2021. 

Louisville returns home to play Stanford on Saturday, Jan 2 & North Carolina on Tuesday, Jan. 5.  Louisville’s only loss in five tries against the Cardinal came in January in Palo Alto, 80-76.  The Cards lost to the Tar Heels 77-74 in the Dean Dome last season.  

The Cards go to Moody Coliseum in Dallas to face SMU on Saturday, Jan. 9.  The Cards beat the Mustangs in the second round of the ACC Tournament in March. 

Louisville will host California in the KFC Yum! Center on Wednesday Jan. 13 before heading to Syracuse that weekend on Saturday, Jan. 16.  The Cards won 90-70 in Berkeley last season.  Louisville owns a 21-14 record vs Syracuse, beating the Orange last time out in March 77-62. 

The Cards host Miami on Tuesday, Jan. 19, before hitting the road for three games. 

Louisville will take on Baylor in Indianapolis on Saturday, Jan. 23 in Indianapolis, before heading to Boston College on Jan. 27 and Georgia Tech on Jan. 30.  The Cards beat Baylor in Fort Worth on Valentines Day this year, 82-71.  Boston College will be led by first year head coach and former Louisville assistant, Luke Murray.  The road trip to Atlanta to end the month is usually a “Cardinal fan” takeover of McCamish Pavilion.

Three of the first four games of February will be in the KFC Yum! Center.  The Cards host Pittsburgh on Tuesday, Feb. 2 and Wake Forest on Saturday, Feb. 6.  Louisville beat both teams in Saturday afternoon matchups on the road last season. 

The Ville heads to Chapel Hill for a Big Monday matchup with the North Carolina Tar Hells on Feb. 8, before coming back to the KFC Yum! Center for the return game against SMU on Saturday, Feb. 13. 

Monday, Feb. 15, Louisville heads to Charlottesville to face Virginia in their second of consecutive Big Monday road tilts.  The Hoos return most of their production, including leading scorer Thijs De Ridder this season & are a popular preseason top-10 pick. 

The only Sunday conference game of the year sees The Ville in Tallahassee on Feb. 21 to face Florida State.  The Cards and Noles did not meet up last season.  Head coach Luke Loucks is one of the hottest up and coming coaching names in college hoops. 

Duke rolls into the KFC Yum! Center Wednesday, Feb. 24.  Duke has a 19-9 lead in the all-time record, but the Cards beat the Blue Devils in the 2013 Elite Eight and 1986 National Championship. 

A trip to Raleigh to face NC State on Tuesday, March 2 & a home tilt with Clemson on Saturday, March 6 round out the regular season.  In February, Louisville beat NC State 118-77 in a Big Monday matchup.  The Cards lost at Clemson in a frustrating late season road loss 80-75 in February. 

The ACC tournament will return to Greensboro, NC from March 9-13. UofL is 282-205 all-time against current ACC membership with a record of .500 or better against 14 of the 17 other programs.

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Creighton Harley
CREIGHTON HARLEY

Creighton is a well-known sports media personality, and die-hard University of Louisville Cardinals fan. He also serves as the producer for The Deener Show (weekdays 7-10 AM) on ESPN 680/105.7 FM and 93.9 The Ville, where he helps deliver sharp sports talk, fan reactions, and daily Cardinals coverage alongside Drew Deener & Mark Blankenbaker. Creighton is known for his humor and strong opinions on all things UofL.

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