No. 25 UNC Opens vs Central Arkansas Nov. 3

No. 25 North Carolina men’s basketball opens the 2025-26 season on Monday, Nov. 3, at 7 p.m. ET at the Smith Center against Central Arkansas (ACC Network) — the first meeting between the programs, with UCA receiving a $90,000 guarantee for the buy game. Hubert Davis’s roster features 11 new players built around senior guard Seth Trimble and newcomers including transfers Henri Veesaar, Jarin Stevenson, Kyan Evans, Jonathan Powell and Jaydon Young plus five-star freshman Caleb Wilson, who posted back-to-back exhibition double-doubles. International guard Luka Bogavac remains un-cleared and his availability is uncertain pending university clearance. The Tar Heels split preseason exhibitions (a loss at BYU and a rout of Winston‑Salem State), and Davis has emphasized cleaning up turnovers, including one‑handed passes, ahead of tougher nonconference tests such as Kansas; UNC is projected to finish third in the ACC. Anish Shroff and Chris Spatola will call the game, and UNC brings long season‑opener and home‑opener winning streaks into the matchup.