Kentucky Basketball's 2022-23 Schedule As We Know It Today

With the recent addition of the Yale Bulldogs to Kentucky Basketball’s list of challengers, now is a great time to revisit the upcoming 2022-23 schedule as we know it. Kentucky’s official schedule will be released soon, likely early next month; until then, here’s how it stands as of today:

vs Yale | TBD

RUPP ARENA

The most recent game to be announced, Kentucky-Yale is still without a date. Whenever it occurs, it will be Kentucky’s first game against Yale since 1961. The Bulldogs are playing to even the series at one game apiece.

Yale was a tournament team last March after winning the Ivy League conference tournament.

vs Duquesne | TBD

RUPP ARENA

According to respected schedule-breaker Jon Rothstein, Duquesne is among the opponents headed to Rupp Arena in 2022-23; although, it’s unclear when.

The Dukes went 6-24 last year for a dead-last finish in the A-10 with one conference win.

vs Michigan State | Tuesday, November 15

INDIANAPOLIS | CHAMPIONS CLASSIC

Tom Izzo’s Spartans are this year’s Champions Classic opponent at the Indianapolis rotation of the event’s host sites. However, this year’s Classic is a week later than its traditional start date on the first day of the college basketball season.

Michigan State is a fringe preseason Top 25 team with some unexpected summer departures. Still, the Spartans will be a veteran bunch.

vs North Florida | Friday, November 18

RUPP ARENA

Days after the team returns from Indianapolis, the ‘Cats will host the North Florida Ospreys for a second straight season that Friday night. Last season, Kentucky won the first-ever meeting between the two schools, 86-52, on the day before Thanksgiving.

at Gonzaga | Sunday, November 20

SPOKANE

Kentucky will play in maybe the biggest game of the entire college basketball season when John Calipari flies his team across the country to play at Gonzaga. Nearby Spokane Arena will host the marquee matchup of top-five teams rather than the 6,000-seat “New Kennel” where the ‘Zags normally play their home games.

Anybody that wants us to play in a 6,000-seat facility, wants us to lose! And I get that. I tried to look back and find the last time UK played in a true regular-season road game with 6,000 or fewer fans. I stopped looking after the 70s.

— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) August 4, 2022

It’s the Sunday after Kentucky Football hosts Georgia in Lexington. Oscar Tshiebwe versus Drew Timme should be fun.

vs Bellarmine | Tuesday, November 29

RUPP ARENA

Finally, Kentucky will host Bellarmine for the first time in school history when Scotty Davenport brings his Knights to Rupp Arena on Tuesday, November 29.

Last season, Bellarmine was snubbed from the NCAA Tournament despite winning the ASUN conference tournament and its automatic NCAA Tournament bid. The NCAA’s eligibility rule is stupid.

vs Michigan | Sunday, December 4

LONDON

Two years after its original date, Kentucky will make the trip to London for the first game of the three-year series with Michigan.

Tickets are very widely available—like, very widely available.

vs UCLA | Saturday, December 17

NEW YORK

The CBS Sports Classic heads to New York this December for its annual doubleheader with regular participants Kentucky, UCLA, Ohio State, and North Carolina. The ‘Cats drew the Bruins in the second game this time around, marking the first meeting since the 2017 CBS Sports Classic.

UCLA has won three of four in the blue-blooded rivalry since 2015.

vs Louisville | Saturday, December 31

RUPP ARENA

Before you ring in the new year on New Year’s Eve, Kentucky will host Louisville in the first meeting of the new John Calipari-Kenny Payne rivalry. Tip-off time has not been announced, but we know it’s been way too long since Kentucky Basketball has given its little brother a basketball loss. Last year the two teams did not play and Louisville won the 2019-20 game against the worst Kentucky team ever.

vs Kansas | Saturday, January 28

RUPP ARENA

It’s Kentucky’s turn for a home game in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge and reigning NCAA champ Kansas is this year’s opponent. Last season, Kentucky traveled to Lawrence and beat the ever-living crap out of the Jayhawks in the Phog,

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SEC Opponents

The Southeastern Conference hasn’t revealed its basketball schedule yet, but we know the opponents and locations of Kentucky’s league games:

2022-23 SEC Home Games	2022-23 SEC Away Games
Arkansas	Alabama
Auburn	Arkansas
Florida	Florida
Georgia	Georgia
LSU	Mississippi State
South Carolina	Missouri
Tennessee	Ole Miss
Texas A&M	Tennessee
Vanderbilt	Vanderbilt

UK Athletics is expected to release its full schedule in early September, if we’re to assume the same timeline in past years.

It may not be good enough for Ryan Lemond, but it will be one of the toughest in college basketball.