RICHMOND, Va. – The prestigious Maui Invitational, as well as pivotal match-ups with Memphis, Santa Clara, Florida Atlantic and Mississippi State line VCU Men's Basketball's 2026-27 non-conference schedule, released Friday.
 
The Rams will officially tip off their 59^th season on Nov. 2, when the Black and Gold host Little Rock at the Stuart C. Siegel Center. VCU will follow with a contest at Memphis, the first in a multi-game series between the programs. Led by Penny Hardaway, Memphis has reached three of the past five NCAA Tournaments.
 
VCU will embark on a critical trip out west in mid-November. The Rams will visit Santa Clara, which narrowly fell to Kentucky in last year's NCAA Tournament, on Nov. 19. Afterwards, the Black and Gold will head to Lahaina, Hawaii, for the 2026 Southwest Maui Invitational, one of college basketball's premier multi-team events. VCU will open Maui with Providence on Nov. 23 and will face either Arizona, an Elite Eight team a year ago, or Colorado State on Nov. 24. Potential opponents for VCU's third Maui game on Nov. 25 include BYU, Clemson, Ole Miss and Washington.
 
VCU will also face Florida Atlantic (Dec. 12) and Mississippi State (Dec. 19) in neutral site contests in Orlando, Florida and Huntsville, Alabama, respectively.
 
In addition, the Black and Gold will welcome NJIT (Nov. 11), Coppin State (Dec. 3), North Carolina Central (Dec. 7), Central Connecticut State (Dec. 15) and Morgan State (Dec. 22) to the Siegel Center for non-conference match-ups.
 
Fans can catch their first glimpse of the 2026-27 Rams Oct. 4 at the annual intrasquad Black and Gold Game at the Siegel Center. Exhibitions at Old Dominion (Oct. 17) and against James Madison (Oct. 25) are also on the docket.
 
Game times and additional TV information will be made available shortly.
 
VCU season tickets are on sale now through the VCU Athletics Ticket Office or online at vcutickets.evenue.net/list/MBK.
 
Led by second-year Head Coach Phil Martelli Jr., VCU is coming off a 28-8 campaign in 2025-26 that included an Atlantic 10 Conference title and an NCAA Tournament First Round win over North Carolina. Seven Rams return from that squad, including All-Atlantic 10 Conference First Team selection Lazar Djokovic, A10 Rookie of the Year Nyk Lewis and All-Defensive Team pick Brandon Jennings.
 
2026-27 VCU MEN'S BASKETBALL NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE
Date               Opponent                                              Time
Oct. 4             BLACK & GOLD GAME                           2 p.m.
Oct. 17           at Old Dominion (Exhibition)                 TBA
Oct. 25           JAMES MADISON (Exhibition)              2 p.m.
Nov. 2            LITTLE ROCK                                           7 p.m.
Nov. 7             at Memphis                                            TBA
Nov. 11          NJIT                                                        7 p.m.
Nov. 19           at Santa Clara                                         TBA
Nov. 23           !vs. Providence                                       9 p.m.
Nov. 24           !vs. Arizona/Colorado State                   TBD
Nov. 25           !vs. TBD                                                  TBD
Dec. 3            COPPIN STATE                                        7 p.m.
Dec. 7            NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL                 7 p.m.
Dec. 12           %vs. Florida Atlantic                               TBA
Dec. 15          CENTRAL CONNECTICUT STATE             7 p.m.
Dec. 19           ^vs. Mississippi State                             TBA
Dec. 22          MORGAN STATE                                     7 p.m.
 
! – 2026 Southwest Maui Invitational (Lahaina, Hawaii)
% - Hall of Fame Series Orlando (Orlando, Fla.)
^ - Rocket City Classic (Huntsville, Ala.)
 
Home games in BOLD and played at the Stuart C. Siegel Center
All times EST. Dates and times subject to change.