Duke basketball has released its slate of games ahead of the Jon Scheyer’s third season at the helm. The non-conference schedule will pit the Blue Devils against four teams ranked in the Preseason AP Top 25 poll.
Key Games:
Kentucky – Tuesday, Nov. 12 at State Farm Arena (Atlanta, GA)
After two games against Maine and Army, this will be the first early season test for this new Duke starting lineup. This is the tenth straight meeting between these two programs to be held at a neutral site, neither team has hosted since March 13, 1980. The Blue Devils are looking for their third straight victory in this series.
In their last meeting in to open the 2021 season, Trevor Keels and Paolo Banchero combined for 47 points in a 79-71 Blue Devils victory inside Madison Square Garden. Both teams will be coming into this matchup with all-new lineups.
After the matchup, the Wildcats went on a seven-game winning streak against low-major teams. Kentucky would finish the season with a 26-7 record, falling to Tennessee in the SEC Tournament Semifinals. They were one and done in the NCAA Tournament, being upset by 15-seeded Saint Peter’s in the first round. The Blue Devils would start the season 7-0 before their first loss at Ohio State. Duke would lose in the ACC Title game to Virginia Tech, before falling to North Carolina in the Final Four to finish the season 32-7.
These two programs always play close and down to the wire, but Duke fans will want this to be a blowout. In the only three matchups where the point differential is over 10 points, Duke has won the last two meetings with Kentucky’s lone win coming in 1969.
Arizona – Friday, Nov. 22 at McKale Memorial Center (Tucson, AZ)
This is the first time since 1991 that these two programs met in back-to-back seasons. The Wildcats got their first-ever win against Duke on Nov. 10, 2023, by the score of 78-73. That loss gave Arizona a 6-3 series lead and a third straight victory in the series.
Duke makes the trip to Tucson for the first time since February 1991, were they lost 103-96. Arizona will have to rely on Caleb Love, the graduate student who scored 11 points against the Blue Devils. Love is the returning leading scorer, but the Blue Devils forced him into six turnovers last year.
Tyrese Proctor, one of only two returning players on the Blue Devils, only scored 8 points and was held to 1-for-9 from beyond the arc. If Duke wants to be victorious, they will need to shoot better from three-point land. Arizona, in the first half, held Duke to 16.7% shooting on 2-of-12 shooting.
The last victory by Duke was in the 2001 National Championship game, and the Blue Devils would like for history to repeat itself.
Kansas – Tuesday, Nov. 26 at T-Mobile Arena (Las Vegas)
In an interesting scheduling twist, the Kansas Jayhawks will be playing all three ACC teams in the triangle area of North Carolina. Kansas won the last meeting in the 2022 Champions Classic, with a 69-64 score.
The only Jayhawk from that game still on the roster is senior forward KJ Adams, Jr. In only 20 minutes of playing time, Adams was held to 8 points while being one of two players to get four fouls.
Proctor, for the Blue Devils, only added 9 points on 3-of-9 shooting. Neither bench was a factor in the outcome of the game, but Kansas shot 46.3% from the field on 31-of-67 shooting.
This will be ninth straight meeting between these two programs to be held at a neutral site, and 11th overall in the series, with Duke holding 7-4 edge in those contests. Every meeting, except the only meeting ever inside Cameron Indoor Stadium in February 1989, has been decided by less than 12 points.
Auburn – Wednesday, Dec. 4 at Cameron Indoor Stadium
For two programs that play in two of the top conferences in Division I, this will be only the fourth meeting between these two programs. The last meeting was in the 2018 Maui Invitational, where RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish led the Blue Devils with 18 each to defeat the Tigers 78-72.
The Tigers did not get top players from the transfer portal, but did get 6’6 guard Miles Kelly from Georgia Tech. On the recruiting side, however, Auburn did get the 2nd-rated point guard according to 247 Sports in Tahaad Pettiford.
All three previous meetings were decided by less than 10 points, so Duke fans should not expect anything less.
Illinois – Saturday, Feb. 22 at Madison Square Garden
For the first time since the 2018-19 season, Duke will step outside of conference play in February to make a trip to New York. This is their ninth meeting and first since Illinois defeated the Blue Devils on Dec. 8th, 2020, in Durham. That victory ended a four-game winning streak.
In neutral site meetings, Duke holds a 5-1 advantage and has won the last five games. The Fighting Illini has five players coming in through the transfer portal, with Kylan Boswell from Arizona being their top get.
While many of the matchups have been close, the last two meetings have been more one-sided. With this game situated between the two meetings against UNC, this could give the Blue Devils a much-needed Quad 1 victory.
Looking Ahead
Duke basketball, recently ranked No. 7 in the Preseason AP poll, unveiled their roster for the first time at the annual Countdown to Craziness on Oct. 4. After exhibition games against Division II Lincoln (PA) and Arizona State, Duke will open the season at home on Nov. 4 against Maine. This will be their second meeting, as Duke won 94-55 in December 2016.