North Carolina’s 2026-27 non-conference men’s basketball slate is loaded with name-brand matchups, neutral-site showcases and a few familiar faces, all before the ACC schedule even drops.
The headliner for a lot of fans will be the Tar Heels’ trip back to Madison Square Garden to face Kentucky on Dec. 19 in the CBS Sports Classic. There’s also a Greensboro date with longtime ACC rival NC State on Dec. 15 in the Tobacco Road Classic presented by Old Dominion Freight Line, plus three more games against teams that reached the NCAA Tournament a year ago.
The schedule also gives first-year head coach Michael Malone a memorable debut. UNC opens the Malone era with a preseason game against Southern California on Friday, Oct. 9, in Greensboro’s First Horizon Coliseum, formerly the Greensboro Coliseum.
Before the Tar Heels even get to the regular season, they’ll already have two more tune-ups on the books: Oct. 18 against Indiana in Indianapolis and Oct. 27 at home against Charlotte. Then comes the real thing, starting Nov. 2 against Western Carolina in the Dean E. Smith Center.
From there, Carolina’s home slate fills in quickly. Wofford visits Nov.
6, Wyoming on Nov. 10, Georgia on Nov.
13, Marshall on Nov. 20, Monmouth on Nov.
23, Butler on Dec. 6 and The Citadel on Dec. 21.
Arkansas comes to town on Dec. 1 as part of the ACC-SEC Challenge.
The Tar Heels will also spend plenty of time away from Chapel Hill in the non-conference portion. That list includes a Nov. 27 meeting with West Virginia in Charlotte in the Dick Vitale Invitational, a Dec. 12 game at Georgetown, the Dec. 15 matchup with NC State in Greensboro, the Dec. 19 clash with Kentucky in New York City and a Jan. 30 date with Illinois in Nashville for the Nashville Hoops Showdown.
The ACC will announce the conference schedule later.
For fans planning ahead, the priority deadline to order season tickets is Wednesday, Sept. 2.
Single-game ticket information will be released once the ACC puts out the conference slate. Rams Club members will receive an email with instructions and offerings for all neutral-site events.
North Carolina’s non-conference schedule:
Preseason Games
Oct. 9 vs. Southern California in Greensboro, N.C.
Oct. 18 vs. Indiana in Indianapolis, Ind.
Oct. 27 vs. Charlotte
Regular-Season Games
Nov. 2 vs. Western Carolina
Nov. 6 vs. Wofford
Nov. 10 vs. Wyoming
Nov. 13 vs. Georgia
Nov. 20 vs. Marshall
Nov. 23 vs. Monmouth
Nov. 27 vs. West Virginia in Charlotte (Dick Vitale Invitational)
Dec. 1 vs. Arkansas (ACC-SEC Challenge)
Dec. 6 vs. Butler
Dec. 12 at Georgetown
Dec. 15 vs. NC State in Greensboro, N.C. (Tobacco Road Classic presented by Old Dominion Freight Line)
Dec. 19 vs. Kentucky in New York City (CBS Sports Classic)
Dec. 21 vs. The Citadel
Jan. 30 vs. Illinois in Nashville, Tenn. (Nashville Hoops Showdown)
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For UNC, the significance goes beyond one player on paper. Fens, who transferred from South Dakota, now remains positioned to help the Tar Heels in the seasons ahead, and the update adds another layer of reassurance to a frontcourt that already includes other cleared players. In a program where size and rotation flexibility can shape everything, keeping that option alive is a notable win even with the broader eligibility battle still hanging in the background. [Read more 🡒]