Louisville adds Valentine's Day 2026 game against Baylor to men's basketball schedule

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) Louisville's nonconference basketball schedule just got another marquee addition.

The Cardinals will face Baylor on Feb. 14, 2026, in a neutral-site matchup at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, the school announced Thursday. The game will be televised on ESPN platforms, with tip time and ticket information to follow.

It's only the second-ever meeting between the two programs. Baylor held off Louisville, 66-63, in the 2016 Battle 4 Atlantis championship game.

The February clash with the Bears adds another high-profile opponent to what is shaping up as one of Louisville's most competitive nonconference schedules in years — a slate that already includes Kentucky, Kansas, Indiana, Memphis, Arkansas and Tennessee.

Here's what's confirmed so far:

Oct. 24: vs. Kansas (Exhibition), KFC Yum! Center
Nov. 11: vs. Kentucky, KFC Yum! Center (earliest-ever meeting between the rivals)
Nov. 21: vs. Cincinnati, Heritage Bank Arena (multi-team event also featuring Eastern Michigan and NJIT)
Dec. 3: at Arkansas (ACC/SEC Challenge)
Dec. 6: vs. Indiana (Neutral – Indianapolis), CareSource Invitational
Dec. 13: vs. Memphis, KFC Yum! Center
Dec. 16: at Tennessee
Feb. 14: vs. Baylor (Neutral – Fort Worth, Texas)

Louisville is expected to announce its full schedule — including conference dates — later this summer. Among the early highlights of the ACC slate: a home-and-home series with Duke and the absence of Florida State, as the league shifts to an 18-game format in 2025-26.