Men's Basketball | 9/22/2026 12:23:00 PM

September 22, 2026-Emporia State has released their 2026-27 men's basketball schedule and White Auditorium will play host to 15 home games including four straight in November to start the season and five of seven games to end the year in February. The Hornets will play nine games against teams that made the NCAA Tournament last year, with five of them on Slaymaker Court at White Auditorium.

The Hornets will open up at the Hillyard Classic in St. Joseph, Mo. against a pair of NSIC teams in Minnesota Duluth and Bemidji State on November 13-14 at the Looney Fieldhouse at Missouri Western. UMD went 21-11 last year and advanced to the Central Regional final.  

Emporia State will open the home schedule with a School Day game against Kansas Christian College on Tuesday, November 17. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. in White Auditorium following the Lady Hornets game against Angelo State that will start at noon.

The defending GAC and Central Region Champion Oklahoma Baptist will travel to White Auditorium on Saturday, November 21.  The Bison went 30-3 last year and fell to eventual national champion Gannon in Division II Final Four.

The Hornets play host to Tabor College on Tuesday, November 24 before a Thanksgiving Weekend game with Northwestern Oklahoma on Saturday, November 28 wraps up the four game home stand.
MIAA play begins on the road at Missouri Southern on December 3 followed by a trip to Pittsburg State on December 5.

The Hornets MIAA home opener is set for Wednesday, December 9 against Fort Hays State. White Auditorium will be a busy place the December 12 with Emporia State Commencement in the morning followed by a home game against Neb.-Kearney in a rare Saturday night game. The Neb.-Kearney game will also be ESU's Diabetes Awareness Day.

Emporia State will begin the semester break with a trip to 2026 NCAA Tournament team Missouri Western on December 16. The Hornets and Griffons are currently scheduled to play in the St. Joseph Civic Arena due to graduation at Missouri Western.  The final Life in the Balance Break game for Emporia State will be at Northwest Missouri on December 19 in Maryville, Mo.

The biggest New Year's Eve Party in Emporia will be in White Auditorium as the Hornets play host to Central Missouri at 7:30 p.m. on December 31. Emporia State will begin 2027 with the Turnpike Tussle on January 2 when Washburn comes to White Auditorium. Both the Mules and Ichabods advanced to the NCAA Tournament last season.

A three game road trip begins on January 7 when Emporia State travels to Ark.-Fort Smith followed by a trip to Northeastern State on January 9. The road swing wraps up with short trip to Wichita on January 16 to take on Newman.

Emporia State returns home on January 21 as they play host to Central Oklahoma during a busy week for White Auditorium that includes the Flint Hills Shootout High School Tournament.  Due to the Flint Hills Shootout, the Hornets will play host to 2026 NCAA Tournament team Rogers State on Sunday, January 24 to wrap up the brief home stand.

It will be back on the road for the Hornets to wrap up January as they head to Neb.-Kearney on January 28 and Fort Hays State on January 30.

February will see Emporia State play five of seven games in friendly confines of White Auditorium.  The home stand begins on February 4 against Northwest Missouri on Athletic Director's Honor Roll Night at White Auditorium. Missouri Western will be the opponent on Saturday, February 6 before the Hornets take off for their final road trip of the season.

The final road trip will be a short one starting with the drive up the Kansas Turnpike to take on Washburn on February 10.  The last regular season road game is set for Saturday, February 13 when Emporia State travels to Warrensburg, Mo. to take on Central Missouri.

Emporia State will end the season with three straight home games.  Northeastern State begins the home stand on February 18. The Hornets will welcome back their Alumni on February 20 against Ark.-Fort Smith.  The regular season will wrap up on Thursday, February 25 against Newman.

The MIAA Tournament will be slightly different this season as seeds 7-10 will take part in play-in games on the campus of the higher seeded team on Tuesday, March 2. Those two winners will then advance to quarterfinals starting on Thursday, March 4 at Municipal Auditorium in downtown Kansas City, Mo.

The NCAA Division II Central Regional is scheduled for March 13-16 at the highest seeded team that can host.  The NCAA Division II Elite Eight will be held at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Ind. March 23-27.  This year the entire men's and women's Elite Eight will both be held in the same location.
 
Emporia State is in year three under head coach Tom Billeter. A two time NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year, he ranks second among active MIAA coaches with 510 total career victories in his 28 seasons as a head coach.
 
Season ticket holders will be receiving renewal information beginning next week.  Season ticket and single game tickets will go on sale beginning in mid-October at esuhornets.com.

Following a successful "Year of Celebration" that provided free general admission to anyone for all home athletic events, Emporia State Athletics announced earlier this summer the resumption of general admission ticket sales for the 2026-27 school year. As part of the updated ticketing structure, fans under the age of 18 will receive free general admission to any regular-season home athletic events when accompanied by a paid adult. One adult admission will cover free entry for accompanying youth under the age of 18, allowing families to enjoy Hornet Athletics together at an affordable cost.

All benefits-eligible faculty and staff are eligible to receive one complimentary ticket to each University-sponsored regular season athletic event at Emporia State University. To redeem a complimentary ticket, employees must present a valid ESU identification card at the gate prior to admission.