Florida Men’s Basketball to Host Duke in 2026 SEC-ACC Challenge
As if the anticipation for the 2026-27 Florida Gators men’s basketball season hasn’t peaked this offseason with the return of Thomas Haugh, Rueben Chinyelu and Alex Condon, Friday’s announcement of a monumental home matchup added to the hype.
ESPN and the SEC announced that Florida will host Duke in the SEC-ACC challenge on Dec. 1 at the O’Connell Center.
The Gators and the Blue Devils tip-off again after last season’s bout at Cameron Indoor Stadium. In a down-to-the-wire showdown last December, the Blue Devils triumphed in Durham, 67-66, on Isaiah Davis’ game-winner.
Loading ...The college basketball giants are set to meet for the 18th time since their first head-to-head back in 1934. In almost 89 years to the date, Duke will make the trek to Gainesville. The last time they did so, the Gators’ home court was the Florida Gymnasium, situated only a quarter-mile from where the O’Connell Center stands today.
Coach Todd Golden’s Gators faced one of the most difficult stretches of non-conference play last season. In addition to playing then-No. 4 Duke, Florida took on Arizona and No. 5 UConn. All three of those opponents appeared in the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four.
Florida will take the same approach this season before SEC play commences. Before hosting Duke, Florida will compete in November’s Players Era 8 tournament in Las Vegas, along with Kansas, Houston, Auburn, Notre Dame, West Virginia, Rutgers, and UNLV.
However, Golden’s focus isn’t set on just the tournament.
“We’ll want to play some marquee matchups outside of Players Era,” Golden said on Apr. 22. “We want to play some good games for sure … we’re going to play some really tough opponents in preparation.”
Category: Feature Sports News, Gators Men's Basketball
