ORLANDO – Headlined by home contests against recent national champions in Kansas (2022) and Baylor (2021), as well as home-and-home games against the other three newcomers, the Big 12 Conference unveiled the men’s basketball schedule matrix for the 2023-24 season Thursday.
"We’re looking forward to the opportunity to play a great schedule against the top teams in the nation on a nightly basis. It will only continue to enhance our brand here at UCF and give us the opportunity to position ourselves to do some amazing things as we transition into the Big 12."
Johnny DawkinsUCF Men's Basketball Head CoachThe Knights will play 18 conference games in their first season as part of the Big 12, playing four teams exclusively at home, four on the road and five both home and away. While the full Big 12 schedule with dates and television designations will not be released until early fall, the conference has made its members aware of who they will play and where during the 2023-24 league slate.
The Black and Gold will play host to Baylor, BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, Iowa State, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas Tech and West Virginia in their first run through the Big 12. Baylor, Iowa State, Kansas and Oklahoma are teams that UCF will only play at home.
“We’re excited for this inaugural season in the Big 12 Conference for our program. Having an opportunity to play two previous national champions on our home court is something that should be great for the city of Orlando as well as our fan base.”
Johnny DawkinsUCF Men's Basketball Head CoachThree of the four teams that the Knights will exclusively host will be the first all-time meeting between the two sides. Baylor, Iowa State and Kansas have never met the Black and Gold on the hardwood while Oklahoma has faced UCF twice, with the Sooners winning both games by a combined margin of four points. Baylor and Kansas boast recent national titles, with the Bears winning the championship in the 2020-21 season and the Jayhawks winning their fourth NCAA title in 2021-22.
The Knights will host and visit all fellow newcomers to the Big 12, BYU, Cincinnati and Houston, as well as Texas Tech and West Virginia. UCF has faced Cincinnati and Houston a combined 53 times throughout their history, with the first contests dating as far back as 1983 and 2006, respectively. UCF’s battles against Cincinnati and Houston make up 88.3% (53 of 60) of their contests against current members of the new-look Big 12. The Knights have faced West Virginia once and have never matched up with Texas Tech.
UCF gets the chance to visit Kansas State, Texas, TCU and Oklahoma State in their inaugural Big 12 road schedule. All four teams the Knights will face on the road finished 2022-23 with a NET ranking of 50 or better, and three of the four finished with a top-30 ranking. Three of the four made the NCAA Tournament and won at least one game while Kansas State and Texas each made it to the Elite Eight. Oklahoma State qualified for the NIT and made a run to the quarterfinals. UCF earned a 60-56 comeback, overtime victory against the Cowboys in the semifinals of the Baha Mar Hoops Bahamas Championship last November.
The Big 12 Conference sent 70% of its members to the NCAA Tournament last season, a top mark in the nation. Six of last year’s members finished in the top 25 of the NET rankings while all teams finished in the top 70. With the new members included, no team finished outside of the top 85.
Four of the last five teams to transition to a new conference in NCAA men's basketball have made the NCAA Tournament in their first season. Those schools were Boston College (2005), Syracuse (2013), Pitt (2013) and Louisville (2014).
Opponents were selected based on a combination of geography, historical results and a poll of the coaches to best balance the schedule in terms of travel and competitive balance.
The 2024 Big 12 Conference Championship returns to Kansas City, Missouri at the T-Mobile Center. The men’s championship is slated for March 12-16.
SEASON TICKETS
Season tickets for the 2023-24 UCF men’s basketball season are on sale now! Visit our ticketing central page to secure your seats for our inaugural season as part of the Big 12 Conference. Tickets for individual games will go on sale at a later date.