Arkansas basketball, John Calipari to reportedly play Illinois in Kansas City on Thanksgiving

Another high-profile opponent has been added to Arkansas basketball’s 2024-25 non-conference schedule, furthering the anticipation of the Razorback’s first season under John Calipari.

The Razorbacks will be traveling to Kansas City to take on the Big 10’s Illinois on Thanksgiving Day at T-Mobile Center. It was first reported by 247Sports’ Jeremy Werner after Illinois athletic director Josh Whitman announced the game at his media roundtable Thursday.

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CBS Sports college basketball insider Matt Norlander reported that Arkansas and Illinois were originally supposed to play at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.

While a time for the game has not been announced yet, Norlander reported that it will air on CBS after the Detroit Lions take on NFC North rival the Chicago Bears at Ford Field in Detroit on Thanksgiving, which will kick off at 11:30 a.m. CT.

It is the first time that both programs will play each other since the Razorbacks’ 76-63 win over the Fighting Illini in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament under former coach Eric Musselman. Another storyline will be the head-to-head battle between Kentucky transfer Zvonimir Ivisic going up against his brother Tomislav Ivisic, who is an incoming freshman forward for the Illini.

This is one of several marquee non-conference games that Arkansas will play in this upcoming season, a byproduct of Calipari taking over the Razorbacks program. Arkansas is set to participate in the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, December 11 against Michigan.

Arkansas recently moved up into the Top 25 on CBS Sports’ Gary Parish’s preseason Top 25 rankings after Calipari brought in Kentucky transfers D.J. Wagner, Adou Thiero and Ivisic, Florida Atlantic transfer Johnell Davis and Tennessee transfer Jonas Aidoo through the transfer portal.

This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Arkansas basketball, John Calipari to play Illinois on Thanksgiving | Report