Kentucky and Arkansas will meet once in 2025-26 -- this time in Fayetteville

The Mark Pope vs. Coach Cal rematch is coming in 2025-26 — and there will only be one head-to-head battle, at least in the regular season. Like their debut seasons in Lexington and Fayetteville, respectively, Kentucky and Arkansas will meet just once in SEC play again this time around.

Round one was John Calipari’s return to Rupp Arena following his abrupt offseason departure last spring, an 89-79 win for the Razorbacks. Round two? The Wildcats will head to Fayetteville looking for revenge inside Bud Walton Arena.

Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports broke the news on Tuesday, a sign that the SEC schedule release is on the horizon.

Sources: Kentucky and Arkansas will play once during SEC play during the 2025-26 season and it will be in Fayetteville at Bud Walton Arena.

— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) June 10, 2025

Adou Thiero led the way with 21 points for the winning team, followed by Johnell Davis with 18, DJ Wagner with 17, Zvonimir Ivisic with 14 and Karter Knox with 10. Of that group, only Wagner and Knox are back for the Razorbacks.

As for the Wildcats, Amari Williams finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds, followed by Jaxson Robinson with 20, Ansley Almonor with 12 and Otega Oweh with 10. Oweh joins Brandon Garrison (two points, three rebounds) and Collin Chandler (two points) as the returning pieces set to make the follow-up trip to Fayetteville.

Both teams are seen as consensus preseason top-15 groups going into 2025-26, Kentucky sitting at No. 5 in On3’s way-too-early rankings while Arkansas comes in at No. 11 overall.

Take a look at the loose roster and lineup projections for both teams at this stage of the offseason, per On3:

5. Kentucky

• Key returns: Brandon Garrison, Otega Oweh
• Key additions: Denzel Aberdeen*, Mo Dioubate*, Braydon Hawthorne, Andrija Jelavic, Jasper Johnson, Jaland Lowe*, Malachi Moreno, Jayden Quaintance*, Kam Williams*
• Key departures: Ansley Almonor, Koby Brea, Lamont Butler, Andrew Carr, Jaxson Robinson, Amari Williams

Projected lineup:

• G: Jaland Lowe
• G: Otega Oweh
• F: Kam Williams
• F: Mo Dioubate
• C: Jayden Quaintance

11. Arkansas

• Key returns: Trevon Brazile, Karter Knox, Billy Richmond, DJ Wagner
• Key additions: Darius Acuff, Malique Ewin*, Nick Pringle*, Karim Rtail, Maleek Thomas
• Key departures: Jonas Aidoo, Johnell Davis, Boogie Fland, Zvonimir Ivisic, Adou Thiero

Projected lineup:

• G: Darius Acuff
• G: DJ Wagner
• F: Karter Knox
• F: Trevon Brazile
• C: Malique Ewin

Will the Wildcats get revenge? They’ll have to do it in enemy territory this time around.