Indiana men’s basketball’s Dec. 13 contest against the University of Kentucky will tip off at 7:30 p.m., according to the program’s X post Thursday. The game will be played at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky, and broadcast on ESPN.
The matchup between the Hoosiers and Wildcats marks the first in the regular season since former Indiana forward Christian Watford drained a game-winning, buzzer-beating 3-pointer Dec. 10, 2011, inside Assembly Hall in Bloomington.
The two sides have played twice since then, both in the NCAA Tournament. In March 2012, the Wildcats avenged their regular season loss with a victory over the Hoosiers in the Sweet 16 en route to a national championship.
Then, in 2016, Indiana defeated Kentucky by 6 points in the Round of 32 — the Hoosiers’ final March Madness victory under former head coach Tom Crean.
On Oct. 3, 2023, the two programs announced the series would return. Both squads have undergone significant turnover since.
Former Wildcat forward Mark Pope took over at the helm after John Calipari — who didn’t want to play a home-and-home against Indiana — left for the University of Arkansas at the end of the 2023-24 season. Indiana hired former West Virginia University head coach Darian DeVries on March 18, 2025, to replace Mike Woodson.
The Dec. 13 contest is the first of four scheduled matchups between the two. In 2026, the two will face off at Lucas Oil Stadium before returning to Rupp Arena in 2027. Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall will then play host in 2028.
Dalton James covers Indiana basketball and football for the Indiana Daily Student. You can follow him at @DaltonMJames on X and contact him via email at jamesdm@iu.edu.
