Kansas released its official non-conference schedule for the upcoming basketball season on Tuesday afternoon. Shockingly, it’s flying a bit under-the-radar.
Yes, Kansas baseball has taken the spotlight for the time being after winning the Lawrence Regional and getting ready to host the program’s first ever Super Regional. However, basketball is still king of Kansas and the non-conference schedule is going to be must-see TV. Let’s take a look at the top five matchups for the Jayhawks in their non-con heading into the 2026-2027 season.
KENTUCKY, CHAMPIONS CLASSIC (Nov. 10)
The two winningest schools in NCAA Division I basketball history will face off at the beginning of the season in the Champions Classic in Chicago. It’s actually not a bad drive for either fan base, but the crowd will be packed in wearing blue either way. An interesting note in this matchup will be No.1 overall prospect Tyran Stokes ended up picking the Jayhawks over the Wildcats at his recruitment decision announcement on national television earlier this year. Kentucky fans were not happy while Kansas fans rejoiced. This could be a wild one at the start of the season for both teams.
PLAYERS ERA 8 (Nov. 17-19)
Just like last year, this tournament could be a lot of fun for everyone involved. One different twist is this tournament won’t take place the week of Thanksgiving in 2026, it will take place the week prior. Kansas is one of three Big 12 schools involved in the Players Era 8, along with Houston and West Virginia. Since it is a tournament, there is no guarantee of who the Jayhawks will play.
Kansas will begin the tournament playing hometown school UNLV on Tuesday, November 17th. Then the Jayhawks will take on either Auburn or West Virginia on Wednesday, November 18th, depending on how the first day’s results pan out. I’m sure ESPN is hoping to get a Kansas vs Auburn matchup on day two. Getting a Big 12 vs Big 12 matchup in an early season tournament wouldn’t be as fun.
On the final day of the tournament KU will play one of the following schools: Florida, Notre Dame, Houston, or Rutgers. A Houston vs Kansas Big 12 matchup in the Players Era 8 Championship would be absolutely fantastic! Florida vs KU would be a fun matchup as well. It all depends on how the tournament shakes out, but Kansas will get three games at the Players Era 8 and it should be a fun watch regardless of matchups.
VILLANOVA (Nov. 27)
A Black Friday game in Allen Fieldhouse? Sign me up! Bringing in a program like Villanova makes this even better. While this isn’t a rivalry game like Mizzou, Villanova has shown they are a nationally relevant program. They have two national titles in the past 10 years and, while they have lost a little bit of juice over the past couple of seasons, they can still be a force in the Big East. Seeing Kansas fill open spots in the non-conference schedule with games against teams like Villanova just goes to show you the Jayhawks aren’t afraid of loading up a tough schedule to build their strength of schedule. They seemingly do so even more than what they need to, especially having to go through the gauntlet slate that is the Big 12 conference.
BORDER WAR BATTLE (Dec. 6)
The Border War is back again and this time the game will be played at a neutral site between Lawrence and Columbia. These two programs are no stranger to playing at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City and both fanbases will be juiced for this one as a fantastic matchup happening between Thanksgiving and Christmas. It may not be the most evenly matched game of the top-tier non-conference games but the rivalry shoots this one to the top of the list.
UCONN (Dec. 12)
The Jayhawks had a great matchup with UConn last year and the Huskies just outlasted Kansas in Lawrence. This year, the Huskies will host the Jayhawks in what should be another fun matchup between Thanksgiving and Christmas. UConn is coming off a National Championship appearance while KU is coming off a second round loss in the tournament. If Kansas wants to get the attention of national pundits, a win at UConn would certainly do just that.
So yes, all of the focus right now in Kansas Athletics is currently being invested into Kansas baseball trying to reach the College World Series, and deservedly so. Just don’t sleep on this great non-conference basketball schedule that just dropped to kickoff the month of June.
