LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Don't believe what they're screaming in Tuscaloosa and Baton Rouge. The real No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup will shake down Tuesday night in Madison Square Garden.
Kentucky, ranked second, will try to open its 2019-20 college basketball season, by taking the No. 1 ranking from Michigan State, coach Tom Izzo and the Spartans' national preseason player of the year, point guard Cassius Winston.
The game is the second in a Champions Classic doubleheader that will also feature Duke vs. Kansas in the opener at 7 p.m.
ESPN is also providing college football fans a reason to watch. Between games, the initial College Football Playoff Top 25 rankings will be announced.
But back to basketball.
Things to know about the game:
1. Time and place: 9:30 p.m., Madison Square Garden, New York City.
2. Where to watch and listen: ESPN (Dan Shulman, play by play; Dick Vitale, analyst; Holly Rowe, sideline reporter); WHAS 840 AM (Tom Leach, play by play; Mike Pratt, analyst)
3. Spread: Michigan State by 3; Over/Under: 138 1/2; Ken Pomeroy predicted score: Michigan State 72, Kentucky 70.
4. Player to watch: Cassius Winston, Michigan State point guard. Here is the first strange fact about Winston: He is a senior.
That is a player who stays in college for at least four seasons. Winston is a tough, determined, savvy player who finished fourth in the nation, behind Jarrett Culver of Texas A&M; Ethan Happ of Wisconsin and Carsen Edwards of Purdue, in Ken Pomeroy's national player of the year metrics last season.
"He's a good player," Kentucky coach John Calipari said. "Plays with great pace. Plays with patience. Knows what he does well. And he'll play for all 40 minutes. You're not going to take him out. The first five minutes of the game are not going to dictate how he plays."
Winston was a consensus pick as the Big Ten and national player of the year during the preseason. Although he is not a flashy, ultra-quick or large (only 6 feet 1) point guard, Winston is strong, poised and persistent.
He averaged nearly 19 points per game last season for the Spartans, making nearly 40 percent of his three-point shots and 80 percent of his free throws. His assist/turnover ratio of 7.5/3 was excellent, and he got to the foul line for five attempts per game. The matchup between Winston and Kentucky's Ashton Hagans and Tyrese Maxey will be critical.
"(It's nice) if he doesn't foul," Calipari said. "If you're trying to keep this kid (Winston) from scoring, you're going to foul. What you're trying to do is if the kid gets 25, just make them a hard 25. I expect our guys to be anxious. I don't know what will happen with the young kids. You just don't. You can't predict it."
5. Storylines: Both teams are likely to be without key players: Kentucky center Nick Richards has been stopped by an ankle injury with Michigan State wing Joshua Langford continues to battle a knee issue.
As usual during the Calipari Era, Kentucky must replace its top four scorers from last season. Hagans is Kentucky's top returning scorer. Most projections have Calipari starting Hagans, Maxey (a freshman); wing Khalil Whitney (freshman), forward Nate Sestina (transfer from Bucknell) and sophomore center E.J. Montgomery.
Michigan State returns three starters from its Final Four/Big Ten champion squad, led by Winston, center Xavier Tillman and forward Aaron Henry. Michigan State coach Tom Izzo is 5-3 against UK while Calipari is 2-1 against the Spartans.
Calipari said he was as eager to learn about his team as others are.
"I mean, all of the toughness things, you don't know what's going to come out in this game," he said. "You just don't.
"I knew we'd have a tough time with Duke last year. I didn't know it'd be (by) 50, but I thought it would be tough. So, you just don't know.
"I didn't know when we beat Duke (in 2015) that we were nearly good enough to beat Duke. Which we did. Or Kansas (in 2014) when we beat them like we did. You don't know walking into these games because they're so early."
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