EAST LANSING – Michigan State men’s basketball released its non-conference schedule for the 2025-26 season. 

The Spartans tip-off the regular season at the Breslin Center against Colgate on Monday, Nov. 3.  

Then, Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo welcomes fellow Basketball Hall of Fame head coach John Calipari and the Arkansas Razorbacks on Saturday, Nov. 8, in the first leg of a home-and-home series. 

The Razorbacks made the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament in the first season with Calipari at the helm. In five meetings, Calipari has the slight edge with a 3-2 record against Izzo. However, the Spartans won the last meeting in the 2022 Champions Classic.  

Speaking of the Champions Classic, the Spartans will head to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, Nov. 18, to face the Kentucky Wildcats for the first time since the double-overtime classic a few years ago.  

MSU will escape the Michigan weather to sunny Fort Myers, Fla. for the Fort Myers tip-off. The Spartans are set to play East Carolina and then North Carolina on Thanksgiving Day in the Feast Week tournament.  

For the second straight season, North Carolina and Michigan State will matchup at a neutral site. Last season, the Spartans beat the Tar Heels 94-91 in overtime at the Maui Invitational, which sparked a 13-game win streak which vaulted MSU to an outright Big Ten Championship.

The Spartans return to East Lansing on Saturday, Dec. 6, where they will square off against another ACC blue blood, the Duke Blue Devils. This will be the first time Duke is a visitor at the Breslin Center since 2019. 

Michigan State will continue its annual series with the Oakland Golden Grizzlies, coached by longtime friend of Izzo, Greg Kampe. For the fourth time, the two squads that call the state of Michigan home will head to Detroit, to square off at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday, Dec. 20. 

The Spartans will end their non-conference slate against Cornell on Monday, December 29.