UNC Basketball Schedule 2025-26 Released: Full Dates, TV Channels, Key Matchups & How to Watch

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Tar Heel fans searching for the complete UNC basketball schedule can finally map out every marquee matchup of the 2025-26 campaign. North Carolina opens its quest for a seventh national championship with a November non-conference gauntlet that features blue-blood showdowns, neutral-site tournaments and a first-ever ACC/SEC Challenge road trip to Kentucky. The season tips on Nov. 3 inside the Dean E. Smith Center against Central Arkansas before Kansas arrives four nights later in a rematch of last year’s Sweet 16 thriller. A five-game homestand continues with Radford, N.C. Central and Navy, giving Hubert Davis’ reloaded rotation a chance to solidify roles ahead of the Fort Myers Tip-Off. In Florida, UNC meets St. Bonaventure on Nov. 25 and could see Michigan State two days later if both programs advance. December ramps up with a heavyweight visit to Rupp Arena on Dec. 2, marking the first true-road meeting between North Carolina and Kentucky since 2018. The Tar Heels then return to Chapel Hill for primetime clashes against Georgetown (Dec. 7) and USC Upstate (Dec. 13) before hosting ETSU on Dec. 16. Five days later, the CBS Sports Classic shifts to Atlanta as UNC battles Ohio State inside State Farm Arena. The non-league slate closes with East Carolina on Dec. 22, followed by a post-holiday ACC opener versus Florida State on Dec. 30. Conference play brings 20 tests, highlighted by the 260th and 261st editions of the Duke rivalry. Carolina gets the first crack at Cameron Indoor on Mar. 7, but not before welcoming the Blue Devils to a sold-out Smith Center on Feb. 7. Syracuse is the lone other repeat opponent, visiting Feb. 2 before hosting UNC in the JMA Wireless Dome on Feb. 21. Other Smith Center dates include Wake Forest (Jan. 10), Notre Dame (Jan. 21), Pitt (Feb. 14) and Clemson (Mar. 3), while treks to California bookend mid-January with stops at Stanford (Jan. 14) and Cal (Jan. 17). Road warriors will also circle SMU on Jan. 3—a rare ACC matchup deep in the heart of Texas—as well as late-season showdowns at Miami (Feb. 10) and NC State (Feb. 17). The regular season finale sets up the ACC Tournament in Charlotte from Mar. 10–14, where seeding could hinge on that closing Duke contest. Television coverage spans ESPN, ESPN2, ACC Network, FOX, FS1, CBS and The CW, ensuring global visibility for star guard Elliot Cadeau, veteran big man Jalen Washington and five-star freshman Maximo Adams. With 11 home dates before New Year’s, ticket demand is already spiking; limited seats remain through the UNC Ticket Office, while secondary platforms report premium prices for Kansas and Duke. From November tune-ups to March rivalry fireworks, the 2025-26 UNC basketball schedule offers coast-to-coast challenges that should boost the Tar Heels’ NET ranking and galvanize a fan base hungry for a deep NCAA run. Bookmark the dates now—the road to Phoenix begins in Chapel Hill.