Both the Men’s and Women’s Basketball Programs 2026-27 complete schedules have been released. Coach Mark Madsen’s and Coach Charmin Smith’s programs both focus on limited non-conference travel while finding a nice range of opposition before conference play kicks off in late December.
Men’s Basketball
Last year’s relatively weak nonconference schedule allowed Cal to start off 12-1 before ACC play began. The difficulty level ramps up this year, with the matchup against national title contenders Houston on November 8th in Lake Tahoe the marquee game of the early season schedule. It will be Cal’s 3rd game of the year, after a pair of home games against Adams State and Radford during the first week of November.
Cal also face Minnesota in Sioux Falls, travel to Utah to complete the home-and-home series, and hosts USC and Vanderbilt at Haas Pavilion.
This is the first season since 2013-14 in which Cal will face five Power-5 opponents during their non-conference slate. During that season, Cal faced Arkansas, Syracuse, Creighton, Kansas, Missouri, and high-major Dayton on their way to a 21-14 record and NIT berth.
Once again this season, Coach Madsen has a nearly new roster to work with. While rebounding should be a team strength, the largest question currently unanswered is where will the scoring come from to replace Ames, Pippen, Camden and Bell. This year’s non-conference schedule is tough, but will be more useful for the players and coaches in preparation for the even more challenging conference schedule.
Cal opens ACC play on December 30th, traveling to North Carolina to face the Tarheels and Duke Blue Devils in their toughest road trip of the season. As last year, all games will be on Wednesday or Saturday. Cal will face Stanford and NC State twice, skip Georgia Tech, and play all other teams once. Duke, UNC, Miami, Louisville and Virginia are forecasted to be the top ACC teams this year. In addition to the road opener, Virginia comes to Haas during Cal’s first homestand, facing the Golden Bears on January 9th. The Bears wrap up with home games against Boston College and Wake Forest, then end the regular season at Stanford.
Complete Men’s Basketball Schedule.
Women’s Basketball
This upcoming season for Coach Charmin Smith’s team is shaping up to be very similar to the Women’s Basketball 2024-25 season.
In that season, Cal’s first in the ACC, Coach Smith returned four starters from the previous season (Ioanna Krimili, Lulu Twidale, Marta Suarez, Michelle Onyiah), and added impact transfer Kayla Williams from USC. Picked to finish near the bottom of the conference, Cal finished 11-7 in ACC play with several notable victories, and earned an NCAA berth.
This season, Cal returns Lulu Twidale, Gisella Maul, Taylor Barnes, and Mjracle Shepperd, and added impact transfer C Albina Syla from Rhode Island. Cal will most likely be picked to finish near the middle of the conference. The only prediction I have found so far is Warren Nolan’s 9th place prediction. Cal has the talent to exceed those expectations, and the schedule sets up nicely for a succesful season.
The Bears face UCLA and USC in exhibition contests in October, two of the more interesting games on this year’s schedule. UCLA is rebuilding, having lost their entire starting lineup from last year’s NCAA championship team. USC returns all-world player Juju Watkins.
The non-conference schedule is very manageable. Cal travels to Hawaii to face Hawaii and Gonzaga. That is their only trip outside of the Pacific Time Zone, as Cal will stay in California/Tahoe for the rest of their non-conference schedule. Notable games include hosting Texas A&M in the ACC/SEC Challenge on December 3rd. and facing Nebraska at the Chase Center on December 20th.
Duke and Louisville are pre-season Top 10 teams, with North Carolina and Notre Dame also in the Top 25. NC State, Virginia and Cal are currently in the next tier of teams looking to prove that they belong in the top echelon of the conference.
Cal opens conference play on December 13th, hosting the Stanford Cardinal. Like last year, conference games are scheduled for Thursdays and Sundays. The Golden Bears will know where they stand by the end of January, as Cal faces six of the top conference teams during the first month. Cal’s first road trip will be to Notre Dame and Louisville on December 31st and January 3rd. Cal then hosts NC State and Miami for their first home games of the new year the following week, before going back on the road to Duke. North Carolina pays a visit to Haas Pavilion on January 21st.
February lightens up a bit and looks poised for a strong finish. Cal ends the season hosting Boston College and Pitt on February 26th and 28th
Complete Women’s Basketball Schedule
Exhibition games are less than four weeks away. We’ll have more coverage of both basketball programs as we enter October and get ready for the regular season tipoffs in November.
The Cal women's team is going to be fun to watch this season. So, get your tickets!
They have depth, scorers, height and lots of experience. Other players to watch include: Shannon Dowell, a 5'10 guard from Mizzou who took it to us last season in the SEC-ACC Challenge game. I'm anxious to see the two Aussie freshmen, Zara Russell and Ruby Perkins, on the court. And finally, Carly Amborn, a 6'2 guard with 3-pointer skills, who "got smarter" and left Stanfurd to play for the Bears.
Correction: the season finale is down on the farm. Cal hosts Furd on January 23.