Kansas basketball’s regular season now has a much clearer outline.
On Tuesday, KU and the Big 12 locked in most of the tipoff times and television windows for the 2026-27 schedule, giving fans a better look at where the Jayhawks will show up across the national TV landscape. KU is set to appear on ESPN, CBS, FOX, ABC and Peacock during the season.
The schedule starts moving fast from the jump. KU’s first exhibition comes Friday night at home against Pitt State, a game that doubles as Late Night in the Phog. The Jayhawks’ season opener follows 17 days after that first exhibition.
That early stretch includes a mix of exhibition tune-ups and heavyweight nonconference matchups. KU will host Louisville in an exhibition on Oct. 21 at 6 p.m.
CT, then Duke on Oct. 25 at noon. The regular season opens Nov. 2 at 7 p.m. against Fordham on ESPN+, and Middle Tennessee visits on Nov. 6 at 8 p.m. on ESPNU.
The first real measuring-stick games arrive quickly. KU plays Kentucky in Chicago on Nov. 10 at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN, then meets UNLV in Las Vegas on Nov. 17 at 8:30 p.m. ESPN will also carry at least one game in Las Vegas on Nov. 18, with a start time listed as 6:30 or 9 p.m., and another on Nov. 19 that remains listed as TBD.
After that, the schedule keeps stacking up nationally televised games. Villanova visits on Nov. 27 at 4 p.m. on ESPN2, Missouri is set for Dec. 6 at 4 p.m. in Kansas City on ESPN, and a Dec. 12 trip to UConn lands on FOX. KU will also face Ohio State in New York on Dec. 19 at 11 a.m. on CBS, Indiana State on Dec. 22 at 5 p.m. on ESPN2, and LSU in New Orleans on Dec. 29 at 7 p.m. on ESPN2.
League play brings its own heavy dose of spotlight. West Virginia comes to Lawrence on Jan. 2 at 12:30 p.m. on CBS, followed by trips to Utah and BYU in the first half of January. Colorado visits on Jan. 13 at 8 p.m. on ESPN2/ESPNU, and UCF comes in Jan. 16 at 1 p.m. on FOX/FS1.
The late-January and February stretch is lined with familiar Big 12 flashpoints. KU travels to Cincinnati, Kansas State, Houston, Iowa State, Arizona and TCU while also hosting Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Arizona State, Baylor, Kansas State and Iowa State. That run includes a Feb. 6 home game against Texas Tech on ESPN on ABC, a Feb. 9 home date with Arizona State on Peacock, and a Feb. 17 matchup with Baylor on Peacock.
A few of those games still have flexible windows. KU’s trip to Kansas State on Jan. 23 is listed at 11 a.m. or 7 p.m. on FOX, and the Feb. 20 game at Arizona carries a 3 p.m. or 3:30 p.m. start on ESPN.
The regular season closes with a pair of final Big 12 dates: home against Iowa State on March 1 at 8 p.m. on ESPN, then at Baylor on March 6 at 12:30 p.m. on CBS.
In Other News...
Kansas Is Changing Late Night In The Phog In A Big Way
Late Night in the Phog is getting a notable makeover this fall, and for longtime Kansas fans, the biggest change is on the floor. Instead of the usual intrasquad scrimmage, the Jayhawks will play an actual exhibition game against Division II Pittsburg State, giving the season-opening showcase a more traditional game-night feel while still keeping plenty of the familiar flourishes that have made the event a staple in Lawrence.
The format shift also comes with one conspicuous subtraction, as the musical component will no longer be part of the evening. Even so, Kansas is keeping the skits and halftime activities that have long helped make Late Night more than just a basketball preview, and the womens program will again have its own spotlight with a separate Late Night event on Oct. 29 against Washburn. [Read more 🡒]
Jeff Boschees Allen Fieldhouse Return Gives Late Night A Different Feel
Jeff Boschee is headed back to Allen Fieldhouse for the 42nd annual Late Night in the Phog, and his return adds an extra layer to one of Kansas basketballs most familiar traditions. Now the head coach at Pittsburg State, Boschee will bring his team in for an exhibition against the Jayhawks, turning a celebration of the new season into something a little more personal for a former KU starter who helped Kansas reach the 2002 Final Four.
Boschee still owns the Kansas school record for career 3-pointers, so this is a homecoming with plenty of basketball history attached to it. He has reflected on his playing days at KU and has been urging his current team to compete hard in the matchup, which gives Pittsburg State a chance to test itself in a building where Boschee once made his mark and where the spotlight will be waiting again. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Faces Two Urgent Problems Entering The Sunflower Showdown
Kansas heads into the Sunflower Showdown trying to clean up the kind of slow offensive starts that have too often put it in a hole before it can settle in. The Jayhawks have shown the ability to move the ball once the rhythm arrives, but the first few series have been a recurring problem, and against Kansas State there is little margin for another sluggish opening.
Avery Johnson makes the assignment even trickier for Kansas, because the Wildcats quarterback can stress a defense in more than one way and force constant adjustment. The Jayhawks have enough recent evidence to know what kind of trouble that can create, and their response on both sides of the ball will go a long way toward deciding whether they can keep the rivalry game on their terms. [Read more 🡒]