One of the biggest criticisms of Duke's 2024-2025 season was the lack of battle-tested moments before March arrived. While the Blue Devils racked up wins and looked dominant throughout the year, they were not consistently challenged in close, high-pressure games during the regular season. When that moment finally came against Houston in the Final Four, Duke looked unprepared for the pressure and suffered a historic collapse that ended its season.
Jon Scheyer took that criticism personally last year, putting together one of the toughest nonconference slates in the country. The Blue Devils faced two eventual No. 1 seeds from the NCAA Tournament, along with Michigan State, Kansas, Arkansas, and Texas Tech - all teams that finished as top-five seeds.
Even after all of that, Scheyer doesn't look interested in easing up anytime soon. Duke has now officially lined up another out-of-conference gauntlet for next season, announcing a partnership with Amazon Prime Video that will feature three marquee Blue Devils matchups against some of the sport's biggest brands.
Duke unveils loaded non-conference slate through Amazon Prime partnership
Duke's partnership with Amazon Prime Video is reportedly a multi-year deal, meaning Blue Devils fans can expect matchups like this for years to come. But beyond the long-term implications, the schedule itself immediately raises eyebrows with a slate of intriguing matchups.
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— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) April 30, 2026
The most intriguing matchup on the slate is undoubtedly against UConn. After the heartbreaking loss in the Elite Eight on a last-second heave from the logo, Duke will have plenty of motivation to even the score. That isn't the only storyline heading into this one, as former Blue Devil Nik Khamenia will be suiting up for the Huskies after leaving Durham via the Transfer Portal. Regardless of the outside noise, it's the kind of matchup that speaks for itself.
The Michigan game also stands out as a rematch of one of the biggest regular-season games of last year. Duke came away with the win in Washington, D.C., but Michigan ultimately went on to win the national championship. With both teams looking primed to be back in the same positions again this year, there will be no shortage of motivation on either side when they meet in December.
The matchup with Gonzaga, now a member of the Pac-12, doesn't carry quite the same hype as the other two, but it still gives Duke another high-level neutral-site test against one of the most consistent programs in the last decade. On top of these three matchups, Duke will have another matchup against an elite team in the ACC/SEC Challenge, but that schedule has yet to be announced.
Jon Scheyer has been on fire this offseason, once again assembling what is projected to be one of the best rosters in the nation next season. Earlier today, he showed Mike Malone how it's done, beating him out in a recruiting battle for highly-touted international big, Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje. It's clear that Scheyer wants to bring number six to Durham desperately and will do whatever is necessary to accomplish that.
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