Cullowhee N.C.  – Three NCAA tournament teams from a season ago, highlighted by a pair of teams out of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), headline the Western Carolina 2026-27 Catamount men's basketball schedule announced Tuesday by third-year head coach Tim Craft. Along with Tuesday's announcement, the Southern Conference released its 20-game home-and-home league slate, which begins on Dec. 1, 2026. 

WCU's 31-game seasonal schedule includes 15 home dates on Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center. Official tipoff times, game day promotions, and all broadcast information will be announced closer to the season, though WCU's home games are slated to air on ESPN+ (paid subscription required) if not selected for national or regional broadcast. Season tickets for Catamount basketball at Ingles Court in the Ramsey Center will go on sale in the coming weeks.

All told, the Catamounts face 16 teams in 2026-27 season that recorded 15 or more victories a season ago, including four squads that eclipsed the 20-win plateau. Three opponents appeared in the 2026 NCAA tournament which included SoCon tournament champion Furman. Western Carolina features a host of in-state foes throughout the 2026 nonconference portion of the slate as four in-state oppositions are on the docket for the season.

Western Carolina has a pair of preseason exhibitions on the docket to open the 2026-27 schedule, beginning on Tuesday, Oct. 20, when the Purple & Gold travel to Boone to square off with mountain rival Appalachian State. The Catamounts and Mountaineers are slated for a return matchup in Cullowhee during the 2027-28 preseason. 

The Catamounts first on-court action in Cullowhee is slated for Monday, Oct. 26, with exhibition action as WCU welcomes USC Upstate to Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center.

Craft and company open the regular-season slate with one of three ACC opponents, traveling to Chapel Hill to face North Carolina. The season-opening two-game road swing concludes with a mountain rivalry renewed against nearby foe UNC Asheville on Saturday, Nov. 7.

WCU opens the home portion of its schedule with back-to-back games beginning on Wednesday, Nov. 11, tipping off against National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) opposition Virginia University of Lynchburg. The two-game homestand closes with a matchup against ASUN opposition as part of the ASUN-SoCon scheduling alliance battling Lipscomb on Saturday, Nov. 14, serving as the back end of a doubleheader with the Catamount volleyball team.

The Catamounts return to the road with a pair of marquee opponents starting with a trip to Hinkle Fieldhouse to battle Big East foe, Butler on Tuesday, Nov. 17, before returning down Tobacco Road to face Wake Forest on Saturday, Nov. 21. WCU is back to the home front on Wednesday, Nov. 25 for a pre-holiday matchup against Montreat, before closing November with a trip to Charlotte on Sunday, Nov. 29.

December begins with the first of two three-game homestands, hosting NCAA DIII Piedmont on Wednesday, Dec. 2 before opening the SoCon opener against The Citadel on Saturday, Dec. 5. It marks the fifth time in the last six seasons that WCU has opened at home for Southern Conference play.

The three-game home stretch concludes on Monday, Dec. 7 with an education day tilt against USA South DIII opposition Southern Virginia to wrap up the home nonconference slate for the Catamounts. WCU plays its final nonconference game with its third ACC opponent of the season on Sunday, Dec. 13 with a showdown against Virginia in Charlottesville.

League play ramps up on Saturday, Dec. 19 with the first of two on the road in the Palmetto State, visiting against Furman at Timmons Arena before a trip to Spartanburg on Tuesday, Dec. 22 against Wofford. Following the holiday break, WCU continues its league slate with a back-to-back stretch against Chattanooga (Dec. 30) and VMI (Jan. 2).

The Catamounts continue SoCon play into the New Year with its most extended road trip of the league season beginning on Wednesday, Jan. 6, against Mercer before making the short drive to mountain rival ETSU in a rematch of last year's 2026 SoCon semifinals on Saturday, Jan. 9. The three-game road swing concludes on Wednesday, Jan. 13, with a trip in-state to battle UNCG.

The Catamounts return to the friendly confines of the Ramsey Center on Saturday, Jan. 16, for a matchup against Samford before welcoming in Mercer on Jan. 18. A trip to the Volunteer State that includes SoCon newcomer Tennessee Tech on Thursday, Jan. 21, before making a trip to the Scenic City against Chattanooga (Jan. 23). WCU closes out the month and opens February with back-to-back home contests against Wofford (Jan. 27) and Tennessee Tech (Feb. 3).

February continues with a pair of road bouts against Samford (Feb. 6) and The Citadel (Feb. 10) before a three-game homestand to close out the regular season. WCU hosts chromatic rival Furman (Feb. 13) before a mountain rivalry against ETSU (Feb. 18), ahead of the home finale against instate foe conference foe UNCG on Saturday, Feb. 20.

The Catamounts close the regular season with a Saturday, Feb. 27 trip to Lexington, Va., to face VMI.

The 2027 Ingles Southern Conference Basketball Championship at the Harrah's Cherokee Center – Asheville is scheduled for March 4-8.

Season tickets for Catamount basketball at Ingles Court in the Ramsey Center will go on sale in the coming weeks. For more information, contact the Catamount Ticket Office at (828) 227-2401. Fans will also be able to purchase or renew their season tickets online at CatamountSports.com/BuyTickets.

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