Kentucky to play St. John's, Rick Pitino as part of new-look CBS Sports Classic

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Kentucky will play Rick Pitino and his St. John's Red Storm this year in Atlanta as part of the CBS Sports Classic.

The programs announced the news Thursday, with St. John's taking the place of UCLA in the annual nonconference showcase.

The CBS Sports Classic started in 2014, a new one-night event with Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio State and UCLA alternating matchups with each other each year. In the 2025-26 season, Kentucky will play St. Johns, and Ohio State will play North Carolina on Dec. 20 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.

A game between the Wildcats and Red Storm has been rumored for a while now, ever since Mark Pope — a former captain on the Pitino-led 1996 National Championship team at Kentucky — took over in Lexington.

Kentucky also has nonconference games scheduled next year against Michigan State, Gonzaga, Indiana and Louisville. Another game — part of the ACC-SEC Challenge — is yet to be announced. The Wildcats still haven't gotten a decision from star guard Otega Oweh, who entered the NBA Draft while maintaining his eligibility. He has until June 15 to withdraw from the draft, which will be held June 25-26.

In the meantime, Pope has received commitments from a slew of talented transfers, including Jayden Quaintance (Arizona State), Jaland Lowe (Pittsburgh), Denzel Aberdeen (Florida), Mouhamed Dioubate (Alabama), Andrija Jelavic (Croatia) and Kam Williams (Tulane). Five-star high school prospects Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno — who won Kentucky Mr. Basketball from Great Cross High School in Georgetown — round out of the core of the Wildcats' new roster.