It will be a clash of blue bloods at Rupp Arena as Kentucky hosts Hubert Davis and North Carolina in the 2025-26 SEC/ACC Challenge, marking the Tar Heels’ first visit to Lexington since the 2014-15 season.

Kentucky’s nonconference schedule already featured several marquee matchups, and now adds even more firepower with one of the sport’s premier programs heading to Rupp Arena.

Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports was first to report the matchups Wednesday afternoon, listing the full slate of SEC/ACC Challenge games:

2025 SEC/ACC Challenge Games

• North Carolina at Kentucky
• Florida at Duke
• Virginia at Texas
• NC State at Auburn
• Clemson at Alabama
• Louisville at Arkansas
• Oklahoma at Wake Forest
• SMU at Vanderbilt
• Texas A&M at Pitt
• Mississippi State at Georgia Tech
• Miami at Ole Miss
• LSU at Boston College
• Virginia Tech at South Carolina
• Tennessee at Syracuse
• Missouri at Notre Dame
• Georgia at Florida State

Kentucky traveled to Clemson for last season’s challenge, falling to the Tigers 70-66.

Last season, Mouhamed Dioubate embodied everything Kentucky lacked to get over the hump.

The 6-foot-7 forward, then a sophomore at Alabama, helped lead the Crimson Tide to a three-game sweep of the Wildcats—twice during the regular season and again in the SEC Tournament.

Mark Pope’s first Kentucky team leaned on finesse, spacing and technical skill. Dioubate, meanwhile, was all grit, energy and relentless physicality—the very traits that made Nate Oats’ Alabama squad so dangerous.

In those three meetings, Dioubate routinely exposed Kentucky’s athletic limitations. He recorded eight points, eight rebounds and three assists in just 18 minutes during the first clash at Rupp Arena. In the return game in Tuscaloosa, he added four points and five boards in another 18-minute outing. And in the SEC Tournament rout, he tallied 13 points and eight rebounds in 22 minutes.

But it was Dioubate’s defense that proved most disruptive, particularly in Alabama’s second win. Kentucky star guard Otega Oweh, riding a 26-game double-digit scoring streak at the time, was held to just two points on 1-for-9 shooting.

“I know what he brings, and I didn’t like playing against him,” Oweh said Tuesday. The senior guard initially declared for the NBA Draft but ultimately returned for another season in Lexington.

Dioubate struck again in the SEC Tournament, limiting Oweh to just eight points—only the third time all season he failed to reach double digits. His effort earned him Alabama’s coveted “Hard Hat” award in both the Jan. 18 and March 14 victories over Kentucky.

Now, Oweh and Dioubate are teammates.

Dioubate averaged 7.2 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists in just 16 minutes per game as a sophomore. His impact went beyond the box score, earning the respect of Brandon Garrison.

“I feel like me and him are going to connect really well,” Garrison said. “Physicality, great defender, fast, mobile—but I’d say really just his physicality is going to help this team out.”

Despite his success at Alabama, Dioubate didn’t feel fully appreciated. After the Tide were eliminated by Duke in the Elite Eight, he told the Tuscaloosa News, “I know what I deserve,” when asked if he hoped to start next season.

That may still be up for debate in Lexington, but what isn’t in question is how valued he is by his new coaches and teammates. They’ve already seen what he can do—up close and personally. And now, they’re just glad he’s on their side.

After coming in and stealing a win in his return to Rupp Arena last season, John Calipari and Arkansas will host Mark Pope and Kentucky this upcoming season at Bud Walton Arena, where the Cats will get just one shot to return the favor.

Round two of the newly brewed rivalry between the Razorbacks and the Wildcats will come right around one year after No. 20 Arkansas stunned No. 12 Kentucky, 89-79, in Calipari’s first time back in Lexington since leaving for Fayetteville in April 2024.

This matchup is expected to be one of the more anticipated games in SEC conference play, as the newfound success of both of these head coaches continues to fuel the already growing storyline between these schools.

With both Pope and Calipari reaching the Sweet 16 in their first season with a new squad, the 2025-26 season will return some of the nation’s best players to these top coaches.

Kentucky’s leading scorer from last season, Otega Oweh, will return to Lexington alongside Brandon Garrison, while Arkansas will welcome back Karter Knox, DJ Wagner, Billy Richmond and Trevon Brazile.

Though the official pairings and dates for SEC men’s basketball haven’t been announced yet, it has been confirmed by Jon Rothstein that Kentucky and Arkansas will, in fact, face off one time.