SEC Schedule Takeaways: An Oklahoma Homecoming, No Trip To Florida, No Super Bowl, and Austin Again

Posted by author May 14, 2024 Basketball

On Monday, the Southeastern Conference released the home and away opponents for each of the league’s sixteen men’s basketball teams in 2024-25. That’s right: sixteen teams with the additions of Oklahoma and Texas. Your University of Kentucky Wildcats will travel to the home arenas of both newcomers on its next basketball schedule, along with marquee home games against Alabama, Auburn, and Tennessee. Arkansas, too. I know you’re excited about that one.

While we wait—and it will be a long wait—here are reactions and takeaways from Monday’s grand schedule reveal. The times, dates, and television information of these games will be announced later. For now, we review the opponents and trips ahead.

Welcoming Texas in Austin (again)

The Big Blue Nation is invited to Austin, Texas, in the Longhorns’ inaugural football and basketball seasons. First, the BBN will see Darrell K Royal Memorial Stadium the weekend before Thanksgiving for the football team’s debut Texas trip. Now, the BBN can run it back months later when the basketball team welcomes Texas to the conference with a road game at the Moody Center. Rodney Terry and his team will also host Tennessee in a rematch of last season’s second-round NCAA Tournament game, a season-ending loss for the ‘Horns.

Otega Oweh’s Oklahoma Homecoming

Kentucky will also travel to Oklahoma to welcome the Sooners to their new conference, setting up the third-ever game between Kentucky and Oklahoma and the second since 1987. Kentucky and Oklahoma met in 2010 in Maui in John Calipari’s second season as head coach of the Wildcats. In 2025, Mark Pope will take UK into Norman for the first in-conference meeting between the schools.

The Oklahoma trip is also a homecoming game for Otega Oweh, who transferred from Oklahoma to Kentucky last month. Oweh averaged 11.4 points per game in 32 games as a Sooner last season.

No Super Bowl in Fayetteville

The Hogs are coming to Lexington for John Calipari‘s homecoming, as expected, but the Wildcats won’t return the favor in 2025, meaning Calipari’s first Arkansas team won’t have a Super Bowl in Fayetteville. The free t-shirt night at Bud Walton Arena will have to wait until Year 2 of the Calipari era.

No trip to Florida

For the first time in a long time–1968, actually–Kentucky and Florida will not trade home games in the regular season. Next year, only Lexington will host a Kentucky-Florida basketball game, marking the first time since 1963 that the Wildcats won’t play in the Sunshine State.

Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Alabama are the three teams UK will play twice, with Tennessee and Vanderbilt likely as the two permanent opponents and Alabama in the rotating spot.