LEXINGTON, Ky. — The University of Kentucky women's basketball team will play host to Clemson on Thursday, Dec. 3 at Rupp Arena in Central Bank Center as part of the fourth-annual Southeastern Conference/Atlantic Coast Conference Challenge.

The matchup features an intriguing coaching connection. Head coach Kenny Brooks brought Kentucky to the NCAA Tournament in each of his first two seasons and was named the 2025 Sporting News National Coach of the Year after orchestrating a historic turnaround with the Wildcats. Clemson head coach Shawn Poppie worked as an assistant coach under Brooks at Virginia Tech, where he helped lead the Hokies' turnaround to a top-ten national program from 2016 to 2021.

Kentucky and Clemson will meet for just the second time in program history and the first time since the turn of the millennium. Clemson leads Kentucky, 1-0, in the all-time series following a 70-65 victory on Nov. 26, 1999, in the Coaches vs. Cancer Challenge at Hartford Civic Center in Connecticut.

The Wildcats are hosting the SEC/ACC Challenge for the first time in three seasons. Kentucky has a 2-1 record in SEC/ACC Challenges, defeating Boston College at home in 2023-24 before falling at ranked North Carolina in 2024-25.

Tip time and network designation for the matchup will be announced at a later date. Fans interested in new season tickets can now place a deposit at no cost to secure their spot in line for women's basketball's home campaign in 2026-27.

Kentucky announced it will also play host to Louisville at Rupp Arena on Dec. 9, and will compete in the Ally Tipoff against NC State later in the season.