Schedule Released for Emporia State Men's Basketball

Men's Basketball | 9/10/2025 5:15:00 PM

September 10, 2025-Year two of the Tom Billeter era of Hornet basketball will feature 12 home dates at White Auditorium. As part of Emporia State's Year of Celebration all general admission seating is free at White Auditorium this season. To guarantee a seat, reserved season tickets are on sale now at esuhornets.com. Returning season ticket holders have until the first game to claim their seats from last year.

For the second straight season Emporia State will begin the year at the Hillyard Classic in St. Joseph, Mo. The Hornets will open on November 14 against Wayne State (Neb.) followed by a game against St. Cloud State on November 15 at the MWSU Fieldhouse on the campus of Missouri Western. 
 
Unlike last year, the Hornets will make their White Auditorium debut in November when they take on William Jewell on Wednesday, November 19.  Emporia State has won 22 of their last 25 home openers in White Auditorium.
 
The Hornets will play their third neutral site game in nine days on Saturday, November 22 when they take on former MIAA member and 2025 NCAA Tournament participant Lincoln in Kansas City, Mo.  The game will be held inside Mabee Fieldhouse on the campus of Avila University.
 
Their first true road games will come over the Thanksgiving weekend in Oklahoma.  Emporia State will have a Black Friday contest against Oklahoma Baptist on November 9 in Shawnee, Okla. followed by a trip to Alva, Okla. on Saturday, November 29 to take on Northwestern Oklahoma.
 
Emporia State will begin MIAA play on Thursday, December 4 at Northwest Missouri in Maryville, Mo. In one of the quirks of the MIAA schedule, the Hornets will then return to White Auditorium on Saturday, December 6 to play Missouri Western.
 
After commencement exercises in White Auditorium on December 12 and 13, Emporia State will continue their three game home stand with a pair of NAIA foes. Kansas Christian will be the opponent on Monday, December 15 followed by Sterling on December 17. The Sterling game will be a part of a double header with the Lady Hornets and the final home game in White Auditorium for 2025. The Hornets will travel to Kansas City, Mo. on December 20 to take on Rockhurst in the final action before the NCAA Division II Life in the Balance break.
 
 
The new year will start with two MIAA road games.  Emporia State will travel to Central Missouri on January 1 to take on the Mules before the first Turnpike Tussle of the basketball season against defending MIAA champion Washburn on January 3 in Topeka, Kan.
 
The Hornets will enjoy a four game home stand in the middle of January. It will start out with the first of two games this season against NCAA Tournament team Fort Hays State on Thursday, January 8 followed by Neb.-Kearney on Saturday, January 10. The second Turnpike Tussle will take place just 12 days after the first when Washburn comes into White Auditorium on Thursday, January 15. Central Missouri makes the return trip to Emporia on Saturday, January 17 to wrap up the home stand.
 
Emporia State will spend the next two weeks on the road on a tour of the southern MIAA schools.  The Hornets travel to Tahlequah, Okla. on Thursday, January 22 before making their first trip as conference foes to Ark.-Fort Smith on Saturday, January 24.  The next weekend will be a return trip to Oklahoma with games at Rogers State on Thursday, January 29 followed by a trip to Edmond, Okla. on Saturday, January 31 to play Central Oklahoma.
 
February will begin in White Auditorium as Emporia State plays host to Pittsburg State on Thursday, February 5.  Missouri Southern will be the weekend opponent as they come to Emporia on Saturday, February 7.
 
It's back on the road for the western swing of the MIAA starting on Thursday, February 12 when the Hornets play at Fort Hays State followed by a Valentine's Day trip to Neb.-Kearney.
 
Emporia State will have a full week off from competition before playing two of their final three games in White Auditorium. Newman will be the opponent on Saturday, February 21 in the only game that week.  The Hornets will take their final road trip of the regular season on Wednesday, February 25 when they travel to Missouri Western.  The final game of the regular season will be a Senior Day contest against Northwest Missouri on Saturday, February 28.
 
The MIAA Tournament is scheduled for March 3-8 at Municipal Auditorium in downtown Kansas City, Mo.  The NCAA Regional tournaments will be the next weekend on campus sites. The Elite Eight quarterfinals and finals will be held in conjunction with the women's Elite Eight at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse in Pittsburgh, Penn. On March 25 and 27. The national championship game will be played on Sunday April 5 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind. as a part of the Division I Final Four.
 
All general admission seating is free this year as part of the Emporia State Year of Celebration, however reserved seating is still available for sale along with passes to the Hornet Halftime Room. Season tickets will ensure a seat at all Emporia State men's and women's regular season basketball games in White Auditorium. New this year is the VIP Experience combo package of a reserved seat and admission to the Hornet Halftime Room.  The combo pricing is a ten percent saving compared to purchasing each separately.  
Information on special promotional dates and activities as well as single game reserved ticket information will be announced at a later date.
 
Tom Billeter, who picked up his 500th career win as collegiate head coach last season, will be in his second year with the Hornets in 2025-26.  The Hornets advanced to the MIAA Tournament for the sixth consecutive year last season.