The University of Maine men’s basketball team has announced its non-conference schedule for the 2024-25 season, beginning with an away game versus Cooper Flagg’s Duke Blue Devils on Nov. 4 in Durham.
The Black Bears’ season opener will also be Flagg’s college debut, and information about the game was originally leaked on social media in April. The University of Maine Athletics Department will be compensated $80,000 by Duke for playing the “guaranteed” game versus the nation’s top talent on the road.
The remainder of UMaine’s non-conference schedule comes as news, and will include a home opener on Nov. 6 versus UMaine-Fort Kent plus three additional guaranteed games versus Atlantic 10 Conference opposition: at Richmond (Virginia) on Nov. 20, Fordham (New York) on Dec. 8, and finally Duquesne (Pennsylvania) on Dec. 11.
Richmond is paying UMaine $80,000 for their guaranteed game, and Fordham is paying UMaine $65,000. No information on the Duquesne game was immediately available.
The Black Bears typically play three teams from Power Five conferences on an annual basis, but Duke represents UMaine’s only opponent of this caliber for the upcoming season. For reference, the Atlantic 10 typically only sends two member teams to March Madness each year, (most recently Duquesne and Dayton of Ohio), compared with five bids for the ACC (most recently Clemson, Duke, North Carolina, North Carolina State and Virginia).
Coming off back-to-back losing seasons, third-year UMaine head coach Chris Markwood says the lack of Power Five competition on the Black Bears’ 2024-25 schedule is just a coincidence.
“The schedule’s gonna change every year. It’s a big jigsaw puzzle when it comes to scheduling, especially considering our location,” Markwood said. “We talked to a lot of Power Five teams. For whatever reason this is how it falls this year. All the Atlantic 10 teams are paying a little something, and they will be a good test for us.”
In addition to hosting UMFK at The Pit in Memorial Gymnasium, the Black Bears will play Holy Cross (Nov. 24), UMaine-Augusta (Dec. 3) and Boston University (Dec. 29) at home before beginning America East play in the New Year.
UMaine beat Holy Cross and Boston University on the road last year, by scores of 72-57 and 74-65, respectively. The two rematches mark the second legs of home-and-home two-year contracts.
On the road, UMaine will play Brown (Nov. 10), Quinnipiac (Nov. 15), Elon (Nov. 29), Pennsylvania (Nov. 30), Navy (Dec. 1), Canisius (Dec. 14) and Stony Brook (Dec. 21). The Elon, Penn and Navy games will all be played in Philadelphia, as part of Penn’s annual “Cathedral Classic Invitational.” The Black Bears beat Brown at home, 60-49, last year.
