The 2023-24 SEC men’s basketball schedule is set. Here’s what Kentucky’s path looks like.

Ben Roberts
A major storyline during this Kentucky men’s basketball offseason was the potential departure or return of guard Antonio Reeves. After beginning his college playing career at Illinois State, Reeves ultimately chose to return to UK for a second season with the Wildcats. (Silas Walker/swalker@herald-leader.com)

The Kentucky Wildcats already knew who and where they would be playing their 18-game men’s basketball schedule in the Southeastern Conference for the upcoming 2023-24 season.

Now, the Cats know when those games will happen, too.

The SEC revealed its full league slate Thursday afternoon, finalizing dates for the conference campaign and thus officially setting UK’s full 2023-24 schedule.

Kentucky will tip off SEC play Jan. 6 in Gainesville against Florida.

Other highlights on UK’s league schedule include the annual home-and-home series against Tennessee (Feb. 3 in Lexington; March 9 in Knoxville for the regular-season finale), a two-game series with Arkansas (Jan. 27 in Fayetteville; March 2 in Lexington) and a game at Texas A&M on Jan. 13.

All three of those opponents are ranked in the preseason Top 25 by both CBS Sports and ESPN.

Defending league champion Alabama — another possible Top 25 team — will play in Rupp Arena on Feb. 24, the only regular-season matchup between the Cats and Crimson Tide.

The 2024 SEC Tournament is set for March 13-17 in Nashville.

The league announced this season’s conference matchups in late June, though the specific dates for those games were not released at that time. UK finalized its non-conference schedule late last month, and that slate features games against Kansas, North Carolina, Gonzaga, Miami and Louisville. The season opener is set for Nov. 6 against New Mexico State in Rupp Arena.

Kentucky finished third in the SEC with a 12-6 mark last season — behind Alabama (16-2) and Texas A&M (15-3) — after being picked to win the conference in the preseason, when they were ranked as the No. 5 team nationally in the initial Associated Press Top 25 poll.

The Wildcats have not won the SEC regular-season crown since the 2019-20 season, the program’s only league title in the past six years. UK hasn’t won the SEC Tournament since 2018.

Kentucky should be among the favorites again this season, with a roster heavy on new players and comprised mostly of freshmen as John Calipari is bringing in yet another No. 1-ranked recruiting class.

Guard D.J. Wagner, wing Justin Edwards, and versatile post player Aaron Bradshaw, who is recovering from a foot injury, are all top-10 recruits nationally and possible lottery picks in next year’s NBA Draft. UK’s only scholarship players with college experience are fifth-year guard Antonio Reeves, fifth-year forward Tre Mitchell, and sophomores Ugonna Onyenso and Adou Thiero, who played relatively sparingly as freshmen last season.

The Cats are generally included just inside the top 20 in the early preseason Top 25 rankings from national outlets, with CBS Sports placing them at No. 16 and ESPN putting UK at No. 17. CBS moved Kentucky up one spot following the addition last month of international big man Zvonimir Ivišić, who has not yet arrived in Lexington for the fall semester.

Arkansas is the top SEC team on the CBS Sports list at No. 11 nationally, while ESPN pegs Tennessee as the league’s best with a No. 8 preseason ranking. Texas A&M is also ranked by both outlets (15th at CBS and 19th at ESPN). CBS has Mississippi State at No. 25 nationally, and ESPN ranks Alabama at No. 22 in the country.

Florida, which UK will play twice, is also listed among the five teams that just missed ESPN’s Top 25.

Kentucky’s 2023-24 basketball schedule

Home games in all capital letters

Mon., Nov. 6: NEW MEXICO STATE

Fri., Nov. 10: TEXAS A&M-COMMERCE-1

Tues., Nov. 14: Kansas, (ESPN)-2

Fri., Nov. 17: STONEHILL-1

Mon., Nov. 20: SAINT JOSEPH’S-1

Fri., Nov. 24: MARSHALL

Tues., Nov. 28: MIAMI (FLA.), 7:30 p.m.-3

Sat., Dec. 2: UNC WILMINGTON

Sat., Dec. 9: Penn, Noon (ESPN2) -4

Sat., Dec. 16: North Carolina, 5:30 p.m. (CBS)-5

Thurs., Dec. 21: At Louisville

Fri., Dec. 29: ILLINOIS STATE

Sat., Jan. 6: At Florida

Tues., Jan. 9: MISSOURI

Sat., Jan. 13: At Texas A&M

Wed., Jan. 17: MISSISSIPPI STATE

Sat., Jan. 20: GEORGIA

Tues., Jan. 23: At South Carolina

Sat., Jan. 27: At Arkansas

Wed., Jan. 31: FLORIDA

Sat., Feb. 3: TENNESSEE

Tues., Feb. 6: At Vanderbilt

Sat., Feb. 10: GONZAGA

Tues., Feb. 13: OLE MISS

Sat., Feb. 17: At Auburn

Wed., Feb. 21: At LSU

Sat., Feb. 24: ALABAMA

Tues., Feb. 27: At Mississippi State

Sat., March 2: ARKANSAS

Wed., March 6: VANDERBILT

Sat., March 9: At Tennessee

1-Wildcat Challenge at Rupp Arena; 2-Champions Classic at United Center in Chicago; 3-ACC-SEC Challenge; 4-At the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia; 5-CBS Sports Classic at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.

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