Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
UConn to Face Kentucky in SEC-Big East Invite; Michigan State to Face Carolina in Rematch
John Calipari will bring his Kentucky team to Madison Square Garden for a showdown with Jim Calhoun and UConn in the SEC-Big East Invitational Dec. 9.
St. John’s — which may or may not feature Lance Stephenson at that point — will take on Georgia in the other game of the doubleheader.
“We are excited to be a part of this and to have the opportunity to play a program like Kentucky,” Calhoun said. “We always try to schedule against the best and think this is a continuation of that tradition for us. In addition, it is always exciting for our team and our fans to play in Madison Square Garden, an arena that has been the site of so many successes for us over the years.”
Syracuse will play Florida and DePaul will meet Mississippi State on a Dec. 10 in Tampa.
In their only meeting, UConn beat Kentucky 87-83 in the second round of the 2006 NCAA Tournament.
UConn will lose Hasheem Thabeet, Jeff Adrien and A.J. Price from a team that went 31-5, losing to Michigan State in the national semifinals. But the Huskies return guards Jerome Dyson and Kemba Walker, athletic forward Stanley Robinson and also bring in talented big man Alex Oriakhi, who could start in Thabeet’s stead. Ater Majok, once recruited by Kentucky, won’t be eligible until Dec. 20 because he is a partial qualifier.
Calipari recently signed an eight-year, $32-million deal with Kentucky after leaving Memphis. He brought 6-10 big man DeMarcus Cousins with him. Cousins, who had initially made an oral commitment to Memphis, will join Daniel Orton and possibly Patrick Pattersonin what could be a devastating front line. Patterson will test the NBA waters, but hasn’t signed with an agent. Jodie Meeks, who dropped 54 points in a game last season, will also test the NBA waters.
The Big East is 5-3 against the SEC in the last two invitationals.
MICHIGAN STATE TO FACE CAROLINA IN REMATCH
Michigan State will travel to North Carolina for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The matchups for the 11th annual men’s basketball event were announced Wednesday.
The two teams in the NCAA title game will meet again Dec. 1. North Carolina defeated Michigan State 89-72 in the NCAA championship earlier this month.
Michigan will host Boston College on Dec. 2 as part of the event.
Other matchups are Penn State at Virginia, Maryland at Indiana, Northwestern at North Carolina State, Virginia Tech at Iowa, Wake Forest at Purdue, Duke at Wisconsin, Florida State at Ohio State, Illinois at Clemson and Minnesota at Miami.
John Calipari will bring his Kentucky team to Madison Square Garden for a showdown with Jim Calhoun and UConn in the SEC-Big East Invitational Dec. 9.