The UConn men’s basketball program is finalizing an agreement to add Duke to its 2026-27 nonconference schedule, according to a report from college basketball insider Jon Rothstein on Wednesday.
The game, a rematch of last month’s Elite Eight thriller, would take place on Thanksgiving Eve at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, according to Rothstein.
It would be the first regular-season matchup between the two blue bloods since December 2014 at The Meadowlands. The reigning national champion Huskies lost that game, 66-56, despite a 22-point effort from Ryan Boatright.
UConn overcame a 19-point second-half deficit to beat the Blue Devils, 73-72, in Washington D.C., on March 29. The Huskies punched their ticket to their third Final Four in the last four years with freshman Braylon Mullins’ game-winning shot from 35 feet in the final seconds.
Both teams are set up to contend again with UConn returning Mullins, Jayden and Jacob Ross, and Silas Demary Jr., who caused the deflection that set up the game-winner. The Huskies have added four from the transfer portal, including former Duke wing Nik Khamenia, who was a top-15 recruit when he chose the Blue Devils coming out of high school.
Jon Scheyer has another top-five recruiting class set to join him in Durham, N.C., including Cameron Williams, the No. 3 overall recruit by ESPN, Deron Rippey Jr. (No. 13) and Bryson Howard (No. 23). The Blue Devils also added one of the best guards in the portal in Wisconsin’s John Blackwell and a productive four-man in Belmont’s Drew Scharnowski. Duke is set to return a strong returning corps in Cayden Boozer, Caleb Foster, Dame Sarr and Patrick Ngongba, among others.
UConn’s 2026-27 nonconference slate is already set to include a home game against Kansas, which just landed a commitment from top-ranked high school recruit Tyran Stokes. Also trips to Arizona and a matchup with Illinois in Chicago to complete home-and-home agreements from last season.
