No. 12 Kentucky men’s basketball (3-1) is slated to face No. 17 Michigan State (3-0) in the 2025 State Farm Champions Classic on Tuesday night in New York City.
The annual event features Kentucky, Michigan State, Kansas and Duke, rotating matchups and venues each year.
The Cats’ most recent win in the event came last season when head coach Mark Pope earned his first ranked win at the helm of Kentucky, taking down future No. 1 overall NBA draftee Cooper Flagg and No. 6 Duke by five points in Atlanta.
Since its startup in 2011, Kentucky has held a 6-8 record and a 2-2 overall record against the Spartans in the early-season series.
What to watch:
With this year’s edition of the classic taking place in “The World’s Most Famous Arena,” Otega Oweh, a Newark, New Jersey, native, and Mo Dioubate, a Queens, New York, native, will be making their return home.
The spotlight will be on the two city boys who have been playing key roles at this point in the season, both two of five Wildcats averaging double-digit points.
Oweh put up a stellar performance in Kentucky’s Champions Classic win over the Blue Devils last November.
The 6-foot-4 guard totaled 15 points while tallying six rebounds, three assists, one block and two steals.
Keep an eye on Oweh to see if he can duplicate that performance while attempting to lead Kentucky to its first ranked win of the 2025-26 season.
Aside from Oweh, Denzel Aberdeen has been Kentucky’s greatest asset through the beginning of the season, leading the offense with an average of 15.3 points per game.
Oweh (13), Dioubate (12), Collin Chandler (11.3) and Malachi Moreno (10.5) are the other Wildcats currently averaging double-digit points per game.
Through UK’s first four contests, Aberdeen’s best showing came on the road in Kentucky’s 96-88 loss to No. 12 Louisville, putting up 26 points, seven rebounds, three assists and one steal.
Aberdeen followed that up with 13 points, three rebounds, one assist and two steals in Kentucky’s most recent 99-53 win over Eastern Illinois on Nov. 14.
Michigan State:
The Spartans hold a 5-9 record in the State Farm Champions Classic, with their last win coming against Kentucky in 2022. Last season, Michigan State was dropped by No. 1 Kansas 77-69.
The Spartans head to New York City without a loss this season, taking down Colgate, No. 14 Arkansas and San Jose State throughout their first few games.
In Tom Izzo’s 30th season as head coach of Michigan State, this year’s squad is guided by senior Jaxon Kohler, who is currently averaging 14.3 points, 13.3 rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal per game.
The Spartans’ main big man, Carson Cooper, is averaging 12 points and five rebounds per game, most recently reaching 17 points and seven rebounds against San Jose State.
Sophomore guard Jeremy Fears Jr. will be a strong defensive test for UK as he can score and rack up assists, averaging 11 points and 9.3 assists per game.
What do the odds say?
ESPN Bet has the Wildcats at -4.5, meaning they are favored to win by 4.5 points. Kentucky’s moneyline odds are -200, while Michigan State’s are +170.
Tipoff for this anticipated matchup is set for 6:30 p.m. EST and can be viewed on ESPN.
