Michigan basketball to play Duke at Madison Square Garden in December

Michigan basketball has added a familiar heavy hitter to its 2026-27 schedule. For the second year in a row the Wolverines will play Duke, this time at historic Madison Square Garden in New York on Monday, Dec. 21, a person with knowledge of the situation told the Free Press on condition of anonymity because they weren't permitted to speak publicly.

Michigan and Duke met last season at Capital One Arena in Washington in February, one of three U-M losses all year as the Blue Devils won, 68-63. This is the third known matchup on U-M's upcoming schedule, with Michigan already lined up to play Marquette in the first of a home-and-home and play Villanova in the return trip to Pennsylvania after Michigan hosted the Wildcats last December. Many believed Michigan and Duke were headed for a rematch last season in the NCAA Tournament, two of the three favorites to win the title for much of the season along with Arizona.

Instead, Duke blew a 19-point lead to UConn, which ended with a 30-foot game-winning shot by Braylon Mullins with 0. 3 seconds left to cap the historic Duke collapse. LAST YEAR'S GAME: Michigan basketball stumbles down stretch vs Duke in battle of 1-seeds Michigan would go on to beat UConn in the title game, 69-63, to win the program's second national championship.

This game for Duke against Michigan is reportedly one of three games the Blue Devils will participate in as part of a three-game package with Amazon: it also includes a rematch against UConn in Las Vegas on Nov. 25, and a game against Gonzaga on Feb. 20 in Detroit at Little Caesars Arena.