UNI men’s basketball announces complete 2026-27 schedule

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- The UNI men's basketball team on Thursday announced its 31-game schedule for the upcoming 2026-27 season.

Additional tip times and TV designations for all league games will be announced as they are set.

The reigning Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Tournament champion Panthers, set to be led by first year head coach Kyle Green, will host Division II Upper Iowa for an exhibition on Oct. 29 in a free and open to the public game before taking on Division III Cornell in its season opener inside the McLeod Center on Nov. 3. UNI will visit Furman (Nov. 7), host Green Bay (Nov. 10), travel to Oakland (Nov. 23) and welcome Lindenwood to Cedar Falls on Nov. 23 before playing both Davidson (Nov. 23) and Charlotte (Nov. 25) at the Sketcher's Fort Myers Tip-Off in Florida during Thanksgiving week.

Non-conference action continues on Nov. 28 with the Panthers hosting Robert Morris ahead of a marquee road matchup at Kansas on Dec. 1 inside Allen Fieldhouse. Northern Iowa will close out the non-conference slate hosting Division III Wartburg (Dec. 4) and at UC Irvine (Dec. 11).

Three league games will kickoff MVC play in December, starting at Southern Illinois on Dec. 18, followed by a home matchup with Bradley (Dec. 21) and at reigning MVC regular season champion Belmont (Dec. 29).

Northern Iowa rings in the new year on Jan. 2 when it hosts Evansville with Valparaiso visiting the McLeod Center on Jan. 5. After a Jan. 9 road trip to Indiana State, UNI welcomes Illinois State to town on Jan. 12, followed by matchups with at Valparaiso (Jan. 18), at home against Murray State (Jan. 21), at Evansville (Jan. 24), an MVC Tournament Championship rematch against UIC at home (Jan. 27) and at in-state rival Drake (Jan. 30).

February kicks off with a road contest at Illinois State (Feb. 3) ahead of back-to-back home games with Southern Illinois (Feb. 6) and Indiana State (Feb. 9). Following consecutive road games at UIC (Feb. 13) and Bradley (Feb. 15), UNI will close out the season with two of its final three games inside the McLeod Center, hosting Drake on Feb. 21 with a road game at Murray State (Feb. 24) before a season finale showdown with Belmont (Feb. 28).

The State Farm MVC Men's Basketball Tournament, commonly known as "Arch Madness," returns to Enterprise Center in St. Louis, March 4-7 and will, for the first time, feature both the men's and women's editions of the league's postseason basketball tournaments at the same location. The top ten teams in the league standings will qualify for this year's event.

New season tickets, as well as season ticket renewals can be purchased online through the UNI Ticket Office, or by calling 319-273-4849. Single-game tickets will go on sale at a later date.

2026-27 UNI MEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

Oct. 29 vs. Upper Iowa [Exhibition] (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Nov. 3 vs. Cornell [IA] (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Nov. 7 at Furman (Timmons Arena / Greenville, S.C.) - TBA
Nov. 10 vs. Green Bay (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Nov. 14 at Oakland (OU Credit Union O'Rena / Rochester, Mich.) - 2 p.m. CT
Nov. 17 vs. Lindenwood (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Nov. 23 vs. Davidson [Sketcher's Fort Myers Tip-Off] (Suncoast Credit Union Arena / Fort Myers, Fla.) - 10 a.m. CT
Nov. 25 vs. Charlotte [Sketcher's Fort Myers Tip-Off] (Suncoast Credit Union Arena / Fort Myers, Fla.) - 10 a.m. CT
Nov. 28 vs. Robert Morris (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Dec. 1 at Kansas (Allen Fieldhouse / Lawrence, Kan.) - TBA
Dec. 4 vs. Wartburg (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Dec. 11 at UC Irvine (Bren Events Center / Irvine, Calif.) - TBA
Dec. 18 at Southern Illinois * (Banterra Center / Carbondale, Ill.) - TBA
Dec. 21 vs. Bradley * (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Dec. 29 at Belmont * (Curb Events Center / Nashville, Tenn.) - TBA
Jan. 2 vs. Evansville * (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Jan. 5 vs. Valparaiso * (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Jan. 9 at Indiana State * (Hulman Center / Terre Haute, Ind.) - TBA
Jan. 12 vs. Illinois State * (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Jan. 18 at Valparaiso * (Athletics-Recreation Center / Valparaiso, Ind.) - TBA
Jan. 21 vs. Murray State * (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Jan. 24 at Evansville * (Ford Center / Evansville, Ind.) - TBA
Jan. 27 vs. UIC * (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Jan. 30 at Drake * (Knapp Center / Des Moines, Iowa) - TBA
Feb. 3 at Illinois State * (CEFCU Arena / Normal, Ill.) - TBA
Feb. 6 vs. Southern Illinois * (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Feb. 9 vs. Indiana State * (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Feb. 13 at UIC * (Credit Union 1 Arena / Chicago, Ill.)
Feb. 15 at Bradley * (Carver Arena / Peoria, Ill.)
Feb. 21 vs. Drake * (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Feb. 24 at Murray State * (CFSB Center / Murray, Ky.) - TBA
Feb. 28 vs. Belmont * (McLeod Center / Cedar Falls, Iowa) - TBA
Mar. 4-7 | State Farm MVC Men's Basketball Tournament (Enterprise Center / St. Louis, Mo.)

Home games in BOLD
* MVC game

UNI men's basketball action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Men's Basketball), X (@UNImbb) and on Instagram (@uni_basketball). Schedule and roster information, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.

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