Kentucky WBB to host Clemson in SEC/ACC Challenge at Rupp Arena

Kentucky women’s basketball is already playing Louisville in Rupp Arena on Wednesday, Dec. 9, but it turns out that the matchup with the Cardinals will be the second game of the season in the prestigious venue for the Wildcats.

On Friday, the Kentucky women’s basketball program announced that they will be hosting Clemson in the SEC/ACC Challenge at Rupp Arena on Thursday, Dec. 3. Tip time and TV channel will be announced at a later date.

Challenge: Accepted. 😼

📆 Dec. 3
📍 Rupp Arena

🎟️: Now taking new season ticket deposits (at no cost) at https://t.co/YY2jS0yvm2! Renewal period will begin later this summer! pic.twitter.com/lheOqcSvMu

— Kentucky Women’s Basketball (@KentuckyWBB) June 5, 2026

Clemson is led by head coach Shawn Poppie, who served as an assistant under Kenny Brooks from 2016-2021 at Virginia Tech. After departing from Blacksburg in 2022, Poppie took the reins at Chattanooga before he was named as the head coach at Clemson in 2024. He is 35-29 (.547) as the Tigers’ head coach. His first year there, they went 14-17, but last season, the Tigers went 21-12 and made the NCAA Tournament.

Kentucky trails the all-time series with Clemson 0-1. The lone matchup between the two programs was back in 1999 in the Coaches vs. Cancer Challenge at the Hartford Civic Center in Connecticut. Kentucky lost that one 70-65.

Overall, Kentucky is 2-1 in the SEC/ACC Challenge. Kyra Elzy led Kentucky to a win over Boston College 83-81 as Eniya Russell hit the game-winning layup as time expired at Transylvania’s Clive M. Beck Center. Brooks then led Kentucky into Tar Hell territory and walked away with a 72-53 defeat before getting redemption at Miami last season in a 64-48 road win.

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