The NCAA Tournament is almost here, and there is a ton to look forward to in the next month if you're a college basketball fan. You can also start to mark your calendar for next season as well as the Duke basketball team will be playing Arkansas at the United Center in Chicago on Thanksgiving. Two of the best coaches in the game will be going up against each other on a neutral court, and it is sure to be one of the most highly-anticipated games of the 2025-26 season.

“Breaking news on a huge matchup for next season in college hoops: Duke and Arkansas will play each other in the 2025 CBS Sports Thanksgiving Classic,” Matt Norlander said in a post.

Arkansas head coach John Calipari is very familiar with going up against Duke as he met up with the Blue Devils often in the Champions Classic when he was at Kentucky. Now, Calipari is the head coach of the Arkansas basketball team, but he will go up against Duke in a familiar venue as the Champions Classic is often held in Chicago as well.

“In what will be one of the most watched college basketball games in the last decade, we could not be more excited to be playing Thanksgiving Day against Duke on CBS again this season,” John Calipari said. “This past year playing on Thanksgiving Day was a great experience and great exposure for our program, as well as all of college basketball. This will be an NCAA Tournament-caliber game that will show us exactly where our team is at that point in the season. These high-level games help prepare you for March. Duke has had an incredible season this year, and Jon Scheyer has done a great job taking the reins of that program. We are looking forward to the challenge in a highly coveted matchup.”

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Thanksgiving is a huge sports holiday as fans love to sit back and watch football and basketball with some leftover turkey. Everyone in the college basketball world is going to be watching these two great teams go up against each other.

“I'm really excited to be back in Chicago and in the United Center with our team,” Duke basketball head coach Jon Scheyer said. “We're always looking for new and innovative ways to approach our schedule, and playing on Thanksgiving night on primetime TV is another great chance to showcase Duke Basketball on a national stage against a great opponent. We're looking forward to the challenge.”

That game is going to be a fun one, but these two teams still have a lot ahead of them this year. Duke is going to be a one seed in the NCAA Tournament and they are expected to make a run at the national title. Arkansas, on the other hand, will be sweating it out on Selection Sunday. They are firmly on the bubble right now, but you never know what can happen if they sneak into the tournament.