Duke basketball to play Arkansas in CBS Sports Thanksgiving Classic in Chicago
Duke men’s basketball has added a marquee neutral site game to its non-conference schedule for the upcoming season. And it comes at the start of the holiday season.
The Blue Devils will travel to Chicago for Thanksgiving for a nationally televised primetime game at the United Center in the 2025 CBS Sports Thanksgiving Classic against John Calipari’s Arkansas Razorbacks. Duke and Arkansas are set to tip off at 8 p.m. ET on CBS on Thursday, Nov. 27 from The Windy City.
Next year’s game between the Blue Devils and Razorbacks will come during Feast Week of the men’s college basketball season, and follow CBS’s Thanksgiving Day Game.
“I’m really excited to be back in Chicago and in the United Center with our team,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said in a statement. “We’re always looking for new and innovative ways to approach our schedule, and playing on Thanksgiving night on primetime TV is another great chance to showcase Duke Basketball on a national stage against a great opponent. We’re looking forward to the challenge.”
The two programs have met five times, most recently on Nov. 29, 2023 during the 2023-24 ACC/SEC Challenge. No. 9 Duke was upset 80-75 by Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The Razorbacks hold a 3-2 lead over the Blue Devils in the all-time series, which includes a win in the 1999 NCAA Tournament national championship game.
Duke is 3-1 against John Calipari, per Duke Wire, with all four of those games coming during his tenure at Kentucky in the Champions Classic.
“In what will be one of the most watched college basketball games in the last decade, we could not be more excited to be playing Thanksgiving Day against Duke on CBS again next season,” Calipari said in a statement. “This past year playing on Thanksgiving Day was a great experience and great exposure for our program, as well as all of college basketball.
“This will be an NCAA tournament-caliber game that will show us exactly where our team is at that point in the season. These high-level games help prepare you for March. Duke has had an incredible season this year and Jon Scheyer has done a great job taking the reins of that program. We are looking forward to the challenge in a highly coveted matchup.”
At 27-3 on the season, Duke is currently projected as a No. 1 seed (No. 2 overall) in the NCAA Tournament by ESPN’s Joe Lunardi. Arkansas finds itself on the bubble going into the final weekend of the regular season at 18-12 overall and 7-10 in SEC play.