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The Indiana - Kentucky basketball series may not be far off from returning to college basketball. There have been numerous rumors that have popped up over the last month and on Wednesday, Kentucky head coach John Calipari addressed them at SEC Media Day.
“We’ve agreed in principle that we’ll be playing them,” Calipari told reporters. “It’ll start in 2025-26. But it’s at the administrative level now, so all of the details will be worked out.”
Locations and timeframes of the series still needs to be worked out, but this is the next step in making the series return.
Indiana head coach Mike Woodson has been very open about getting the series scheduled ever since he took over as head coach of the program a year ago.
Earlier this summer, Indiana head coach Mike Woodson made it a point to say he wanted the rivalry and series back on the books.
"I'm not going to let it die," Woodson said. "I'm going to stay on his heels about getting the Kentucky-Indiana series back on the table because I just think over the years, man, that was a helluva game. Going to Lexington and them coming down to Bloomington. It might not be Bloomington-Lexington, I don't know. But, however way we can get it done, I'll take it."
Woodson then echoed the possibility again this fall while on Jon Rothstein's College Hoops Today Podcast.
“That can possibly happen in the future,” Woodson said. “I just think that Cal and I and the ADs and the administration, we have to just come to some common ground and see what happens. I know that our fans would love to see it and I’m sure Kentucky fans would love to see it as well.”
It has been over 10 years since the Indiana and Kentucky men's basketball programs played each other in a regular season series.
The Wildcats last visited Bloomington in 2011 when the 'Wat-Shot' happened, with Christian Watford hitting a buzzer-beater three to take down the No. 1 Kentucky Wildcats, 73-72. Kentucky was led by Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist -- both going No. 1 and No. 2 overall in the 2012 NBA Draft.
Since then, Kentucky head coach John Calipari has been vocal about not wanting to play a home-and-home series with Indiana, rather at neutral site locations.
Indiana has already added a neutral site game with Arizona in Las Vegas and a home-and-home series with Kansas starting this season. Woodson has also looked into adding a Louisville series to the future schedule.
Indiana and Kentucky have played twice since 2011, both coming in the NCAA Tournament, in 2012 and 2016. Kentucky leads the all-time series 32-25.
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