RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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Duke officially revealed its nonconference schedule for the 2026-27 season on Friday. Although most of the matchups were already known before the release, it reinforced how tough Duke's schedule will be before ACC play begins. With matchups on the schedule against Florida , UConn and Illinois , there's a very real possibility Duke will play at least three nonconference matchups against preseason top-five opponents.
The Blue Devils are expected to open the season ranked No. 2 in the preseason AP Top 25 poll -- which will be revealed in October -- behind Florida. Duke and Florida are currently co-favorites per FanDuel Sportsbook to win the 2027 national title . The Gators are No. 1 in the CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 preseason rankings ahead of the No. 2 Blue Devils. Duke also faces No. 3 Illinois and No. 4 UConn.
This season will be a new era for the program after producing back-to-back national players of the year (Cooper Flagg and Cameron Boozer). Although Duke doesn't have a player on the roster expected to be in the mix to go No. 1 overall in the 2027 NBA Draft, all signs point to incoming freshman Joaquim Boumtje-Boumtje being one of the top candidates to go first off the board in the 2028 NBA Draft . Due to the draft's age requirement, Boumtje-Boumtje will have to play two seasons of college basketball to be eligible.
Duke is expected to have one of the deepest rosters in the country due to a combination of retention, an elite incoming high school class, and the program landing former Wisconsin star John Blackwell in the transfer portal. Notable returners include Cayden Boozer , Dame Sarr , Patrick Ngongba II and Caleb Foster .
With the nonconference schedule officially out, here are the top five games to keep an eye on this season.
When: Dec. 1 | Where: Gainesville, Florida
As I wrote earlier this summer, this is by far the best matchup of the ACC/SEC Challenge. Not only is this the best nonconference game of the entire 2026-27 season, but it could also be the game of the year if it is a No. 1 vs. 2 matchup. Duke has the deepest roster in college basketball, while Florida might have the best player in the sport in Thomas Haugh , who is expected to be a strong candidate to earn preseason national player of the year honors.
This game is a rematch of Duke's win over Florida last season in the ACC/SEC Challenge at Cameron Indoor Stadium. This time, the game is heading south to the Sunshine State in what should be the most anticipated nonconference game since Duke faced Michigan last season in Washington, D.C. So much can change between now and the first day of December, but all signs point to the winner of this game sitting at the top of the AP Top 25 the following week.
Speaking of rematches, this game is more than deserving of an encore after an epic finish in last season's Elite Eight. If you need a quick refresher, UConn overcame a double-digit deficit and Braylon Mullins -- who bypassed an opportunity to enter the NBA Draft and return to school -- hit one of the biggest shots in NCAA Tournament history to send Duke home.
There is a good chunk of returning production on both sides, which ensures that game will be fresh on their minds. Another subplot is the fact that former blue-chip recruit Nikolas Khamenia transferred from Duke to UConn this past offseason. If Duke didn't play Florida, this game would easily be the best nonconference game on the slate.
When: Nov. 17 | Where: Durham, North Carolina
If Duke held on to its lead and beat UConn this past spring, it would've faced ... Illinois in the national semifinals. Although we are getting this matchup about seven months after the fact, it should be must-watch TV. Outside of Duke, Illinois did a good job of bringing back returning talent. Illinois returns four of its top six scorers, including Andrej Stojaković, David Mirković, and the Ivišić brothers (Tomislav and Zvonimir).
The program also added Stefan Vaakas from the transfer portal and welcomes a top-15 high school recruiting class headlined by five-star guard Quentin Coleman. One area of concern heading into the season is Mirković's health after the program announced he would be out 6-8 weeks due to foot surgery. The good news is that timeline would put him on track to play in the season opener and, of course, be ready for this matchup.
Michigan State is one of three teams returning a player from CBS Sports' All-American team. That would be Jeremy Fears Jr. , who will be a preseason first-team All-American and one of the top candidates to earn preseason national player of the year honors after leading the nation in assists (9.4 per game) last season. Fears isn't the only player from last year's MSU squad returning. Jordan Scott , Coen Carr and Kaleb Glenn -- who missed the entire 2025-26 campaign due to a knee injury.
After facing Army and Coastal Carolina during the opening week of the season, MSU will be the first ranked opponent Duke faces this season. That game will have major implications for how the top of the following week's AP poll looks.
Duke was originally supposed to face Michigan in Miami, but the game was called off. Instead, the Blue Devils will face Texas Tech at Madison Square Garden in a rematch of last season's matchup. In that game, Texas Tech mounted a late comeback to stun Duke.
The biggest question surrounding the Texas Tech roster is when All-American forward JT Toppin will return. The program teased in a social media post earlier this summer that Toppin would play this season despite tearing his ACL earlier this calendar year. When and if Toppin returns will determine Texas Tech's ceiling. If he's healthy, he is a first-team All-American type of player. Getting him back for a matchup against Duke would be a great test for its bigs heading into the thick of ACC play the following month.
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