ACC/SEC Men’s Challenge schedule 2025: Florida vs. Duke leads basketball conference clash

Here’s a bridge between jam-packed student sections in rich pastels. It’s a convergence of blue bloods, green lawns and mild winters; recent recipients of the “One Shining Moment” edit alongside desperate forerunners that resist the ticks of time. Together, the Atlantic Coast and Southeastern conferences have some of college basketball’s best programs. They also have four different types of Tigers (Auburn, Clemson, LSU, Missouri). Let the linkup be glorious.

The two-day ACC/SEC challenge gets underway Tuesday night. Host campuses range from blustery Syracuse down to burnt-orange Austin. Attention rightfully turns to ascendant Duke versus defending champion Florida, but eight other teams in the AP Top 25 are suiting up for this set of games. The full schedule is below:

2025 ACC/SEC Men’s Basketball Challenge

Watching in person? Get tickets on StubHub.

All ESPN platforms, including the conference networks, also stream on ESPN Unlimited.

Tuesday and Wednesday mark the third installment of this cross-conference pairing. That first go in 2023 was close, and it ended up as a 7-7 tie. Last year’s run was not close, no matter how hard we squint or how drastically we redefine those words. The SEC won 14 of 16 games, a total trouncing that announced the conference’s forthcoming might.

Unsurprisingly, both ACC and SEC members have been active in recent Final Fours. Florida won it all last season, while Duke and Auburn were semifinalists inside the Alamodome. Alabama and NC State repped their respective leagues in the 2024 Final Four. The last national champion to come from the ACC was Virginia (2019).

This year has an impressive combined field. As of Monday’s updates, seven participating programs rank in the top 20 in KenPom ratings:

Duke (3, ACC)
Louisville (8, ACC)
Vanderbilt (10, SEC)
Kentucky (11, SEC)
Tennessee (12, SEC)
Alabama (14, SEC)
Florida (16, SEC)

The women’s challenge goes down Wednesday and Thursday, broadcast along the same suite of five networks. No. 2 Texas, No. 3 South Carolina and No. 5 LSU lead the billing.

No. 15 Florida at No. 4 Duke

On the call: Dan Shulman, Jay Bilas and Kris Budden

The visitors have the benefit of the doubt after last spring’s dizzying, high-drama sprint through March Madness. They also have multiple losses before Dec. 1. Florida’s opening L to Arizona is excusable — Koa Peat is a bucket, and the undefeated Wildcats start the week at No. 2 in the AP poll. Florida’s neutral-site stumble to TCU last week was far more confusing (19 turnovers to just five steals). The Gators can definitely crash the glass with returning champs Rueben Chinyelu, Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh, three juniors standing 6-foot-9 or taller. But the backcourt needs more bucket-getting; Arkansas transfer Boogie Fland (38.2 percent shooting so far) has not looked like a viable replacement for the graduated guards (Walter Clayton Jr., Will Richard, Alijah Martin).

Duke hits Cameron Indoor Stadium with an 8-0 record. It’s already scooped up a pair of wins against ranked opponents (Kansas at Madison Square Garden, Arkansas at the United Center). Cameron Boozer is the real deal, too. He’s up to almost 23 points per game on nearly 58 percent shooting. In front of a national audience and atop the NBA flooring that his father played on, Boozer brought extra butter to Thanksgiving dinner:

THANKSGIVING 30 BURGER FOR CAM pic.twitter.com/lfSDveSHdA

— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) November 28, 2025

The Athletic’s CJ Moore on Duke’s prince of the pivot: “It appears the Blue Devils and star Cameron Boozer have gone to the Jay Wright school of pivoting. Boozer scored five of his 13 buckets against Arkansas off his pivot work and the other Blue Devils scored three buckets with the use of the pivot. What makes Boozer so hard to guard is he plays with such a wide base and great balance. Once he determines which direction he’ll have the advantage, he’s so wide that when he spins off that foot he gets to the side of his defender so that he doesn’t have to score over the top.”

No. 16 North Carolina at No. 18 Kentucky

On the call: Dave O’Brien, Dick Vitale and Jay Williams

Like Florida and Duke, these two April hopefuls have taken tougher nonconference games. UNC scored a convincing win over Kansas on Nov. 7, but the Tar Heels are now coming off a Michigan State beatdown at the Fort Myers Tip-Off showcase. Someone kicked sand into Hubert Davis’ potato salad Thursday — the team bricked it to the tune of 38 percent from the field and 17 percent behind the arc. Still, North Carolina has punch up close, with the pliable first-year forward Caleb Wilson and 7-foot Arizona transfer Henri Veesaar.

Kentucky counters with three grinders at guards. Denzel Aberdeen (14.0 points per game), Otega Oweh (13.0) and Collin Chandler (11.7) lead Mark Pope’s program in scoring and minutes. The Wildcats are still seeking a first statement win of 2025-26, after coming up short to both Sparty and in-state rival Louisville last month.

The Athletic’s John Hollinger on freshman Caleb Wilson, potential phenom: “Wilson had four dunks against the Spartans, including one on a half-court spin move that was arguably even more awesome than the clip above. While the rest of his performance against Michigan State was more forgettable, it’s hard not to get excited about the ceiling of a 6-10 forward who can handle the ball and move. Wilson has also been a monster on the glass despite his skinny frame, but the next stop is proving he can shoot; he’s only made two 3-pointers all season. Scouts who want to see more of Wilson against elite opponents won’t need to wait long, as the Tar Heels have a highly anticipated matchup against Kentucky on Tuesday, followed by games against Georgetown and Ohio State later this month.”

No. 6 Louisville at No. 25 Arkansas

On the call: Karl Ravech and Jimmy Dykes

John Calipari was the movie villain and the video game boss in his many years against Louisville. But the Kentucky blues have been replaced by Arkansas’ apple red tone, and Calipari finds himself as a sizable underdog Wednesday. His Razorbacks have two high-volume scorers in touted freshman recruits Meleek Thomas and Darius Acuff Jr. But there might not be enough defense to stand in front of unbeaten Louisville, which has cracked triple-digit scoring in four of its first seven wins.

Pat Kelsey’s Cardinals beat then-No. 9 Kentucky on Nov. 11, thanks to a breathless 53 first-half points. They start the week at fourth in scoring offense and seventh in assists per game. Ryan Conwell and Mikel Brown Jr. will see us out:

Wow

Watch now: https://t.co/caeW1wVgLp#GoCards pic.twitter.com/9309Y1WnUq

— Louisville Men’s Basketball (@LouisvilleMBB) November 22, 2025

Moore had John Calipari at No. 8 on The Athletic’s list of top 21st-century coaches: “Calipari has been the best recruiter in the game and had some of the best teams this century — both the 2012 and 2015 teams have an argument for the top spot. He probably should have more national titles considering the talent he has been coached, and while it’s a hit to his resume that he has fallen just short of closing with several of those title contenders, he does get credit for building those teams. Calipari is probably one of the worst in-game coaches on this list, but in his prime, no one could touch him on the recruiting trail, and he always did a good job of getting talented players to play hard, defend and sacrifice for the greater good.”

Ticketing and streaming links in this article are provided by partners of The Athletic. Restrictions may apply. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process, and do not review stories before publication.