Wake Forest Opens Battle 4 Atlantis Against Mississippi State
Wake Forest will begin its Thanksgiving-week trip to The Bahamas against a familiar name from the SEC.
The Demon Deacons will face Mississippi State at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 25, in the opening round of the 2026 Battle 4 Atlantis at Imperial Arena.
The matchup, which will air on ESPN2, marks the first meeting between Wake Forest and Mississippi State since 1997 and only the fifth matchup between the programs.
Wake Forest holds a 3-1 advantage in the all-time series. The most recent meeting came Dec. 3, 1997, when the Demon Deacons defeated the Bulldogs 74-43 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Mississippi State has reached the NCAA Tournament three times in the last four seasons, adding another established program to what should be a challenging early-season field.
A potential rematch with Memphis
Wake Forest's path through the Battle 4 Atlantis could quickly bring another familiar opponent into the picture.
The Demon Deacons will face either Memphis or Penn State in their second game Friday, Nov. 27. That game will tip at either 1:30 or 7:30 p.m. and will be carried on the ESPN family of networks.
A Memphis matchup would give Wake Forest a rematch with the Tigers for the second consecutive season.
The Demon Deacons defeated Memphis 69-68 in last season's Baha Mar Championship after executing a game-winning end-to-end play with 1.5 seconds remaining.
A meeting with Penn State would also renew a series that has not been played since the 2019 Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
For Wake Forest, the tournament provides an early opportunity to test itself against programs from outside the ACC while playing on one of the premier stages of the college basketball calendar.
Battle 4 Atlantis enters 15th year
The 2026 Battle 4 Atlantis marks the tournament's 15th year of competition and will feature a revised format.
Rather than one eight-team group, this year's field will be divided into two groups of four.
Wake Forest's group includes Mississippi State, Memphis and Penn State.
The tournament will again be played at Imperial Arena on Paradise Island, bringing eight programs together during Thanksgiving week for a series of games that can provide an early measuring stick for each team's season.
Wake Forest's opening matchup with Mississippi State will be the first step.
What’s next
Wake Forest will face Mississippi State at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 25, on ESPN2 at Imperial Arena in Paradise Island.
The Demon Deacons will then play either Memphis or Penn State on Friday, Nov. 27, with tipoff scheduled for either 1:30 or 7:30 p.m. on the ESPN family of networks.
