Duke’s non-conference slate for next season picked up another big-name addition, and this one comes with a familiar face.
The Blue Devils will host Harvard at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Dec. 4, bringing former Duke star Tommy Amaker back as part of the Brotherhood Run. The series is built around former Blue Devil players who are now Division I head coaches returning to Cameron as opponents, and Amaker’s Crimson are the latest team to land on the schedule.
With that addition, Jon Scheyer’s group is getting closer to a full non-conference picture for the 2026-27 season. And the early read is simple: Duke has stacked the front end of its schedule with a heavy dose of high-end matchups.
Before the regular season begins, the Blue Devils will take part in a scrimmage against Belmont on Oct. 8, then play exhibition games against Tennessee on Oct. 20 and Kansas on Oct. 25. After that, the real schedule begins to take shape.
The Blue Devils are set for games against two teams that reached last season’s Final Four in UConn and Illinois. Both projects to open near the top of the preseason AP Poll, though Illinois star David Mirkovic’s status is uncertain after recent foot surgery.
There’s also a road trip to Florida that could be one of the season’s marquee games. Duke and the Gators may enter Dec. 1 as two of the best teams in the country, and the matchup will be played in a true college setting rather than a neutral-site building. That only adds to the appeal.
Florida has a lot back from last season, including six of its top seven scorers. The group is headlined by All-American Thomas Haugh, SEC Defensive Player of the Year Rueben Chinyelu, and SEC Sixth Man of the Year Urban Klavzar. And the Gators still might not be finished, with former Florida guard Denzel Aberdeen potentially eligible to return after a preliminary injunction granted college athletes from the high school class of 2022 who just finished their fourth season of eligibility in the spring a fifth year in 2026-27.
Aberdeen was an important reserve on Florida’s 2025 national championship team before spending the 2025-26 season at Kentucky.
Duke had originally been lined up to face three of last season’s Final Four teams, but the Michigan game was removed because of ongoing media rights disputes. Texas Tech moved into that spot.
The Blue Devils’ three games under their landmark Amazon broadcast agreement are UConn, Texas Tech, and Gonzaga. With Harvard now added, the non-conference schedule is nearly complete - and it already looks loaded.
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