Champions Classic


The Champions Classic is an event that tips off the NCAA Division I men's basketball season. It features four of the top college basketball programs in the United States: Duke, Kansas, Kentucky, and Michigan State. The venue changes from year to year, with Madison Square Garden being the first venue. The first Classic was held on November 15, 2011. This would be the beginning of a three-year rotation, originally scheduled to end in 2013, where each of the teams would play each other once. The event is televised on ESPN. The series is currently set to run through 2022.
The series was started as an early-season match-up of the nation's best and most consistent basketball programs as evidenced by the fact that all four teams have been ranked for every competition except on one occasion. Three of the four teams from the 2014 Champions Classic advanced to the 2015 Final Four with Duke winning the National Championship that year. The 2019 games featured the schools ranked 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th in both the AP and Coaches polls.

Game results

Rankings are based on the Associated Press poll.

Future match-ups

Head-to-head records