The Duke basketball program has finalized an agreement to play Michigan State next season in East Lansing. The official date of the matchup is yet to be determined, but it will be played in December. This is a return game from the 2020 Champions Classic, which was played at Cameron Indoor Stadium due to COVID.
NEWS: Duke and Michigan State will meet this December in East Lansing, according to a source.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) May 2, 2025
Return game from the 2020 Champions Classic, which was played in Durham during COVID.https://t.co/vlgaSDTkDA
This is the second game that Jon Scheyer has scheduled with an elite Big 10 program, as the Blue Devils are set to face off against Dusty May and Michigan next February on a neutral floor. Scheyer has never shied away from giving his guys a gauntlet of a non-conference schedule, and he's continuing to add to the 2025-26 non-con slate.
The last time Duke and Michigan State met was during the 2023-24 season, where Duke won 74-65 in the State Farm Champions Classic at United Center in Chicago.
Michigan State is coming off another fantastic season under Tom Izzo. The Spartans earned a two-seed in the NCAA Tournament and made it to the Elite 8. Both the Spartans and Blue Devils are expected to be two of the top programs in college basketball next season.
At ESPN's "Way-Too-Early" top 25 rankings, Duke is currently slotted at #8 and Michigan State sits at #18.
Izzo lost a few key guys in the portal in Tre Holloman and Xavier Booker, but is bringing in some serious talent. The Spartans have landed portal commitments from Kaleb Glenn (FAU) and Trey Fort III (Samford).
The Blue Devils have a very exciting roster headed into 2025-26 as Scheyer is again looking to have one of the top defensive squads in the nation. Duke landed a commitment from Cedric Coward, one of the top guards in the portal, and is bringing back several key pieces from last season's squad in Darren Harris, Patrick Ngongba II, Caleb Foster, Maliq Brown, and Isaiah Evans.
Although, Evans will test the NBA Draft waters, but it seems much more likely at this point that he will be back in Durham next season. Coward is also testing the draft waters and is seriously considering remaining in the NBA Draft, so Duke will have to wait it out and see if the senior will actually suit up for the Blue Devils next season.