4 teams with 2 games and great teams. The Champions Classic was on Tuesday, November 12. Michigan State vs #1 Kansas and #6 Duke vs #19 Kentucky. Both were great games that came down to the last 5 minutes of play.
The first game of the two was between #1-ranked Kansas and Michigan State. Both teams could not make shots from behind the arc. Michigan State shot 12.4 percent from 3, and Kansas shot 29.4. In the first half MSU went 1-11 and Kansas went 2-10 It was a very close game until the last 5 minutes when Kansas pulled away, making multiple shots and stops on defense. Michigan State’s field goal percentage was 34.8 percent and Kansas’s was 40.6. Both teams did not play their best, but it all came down to shooting and making shots. It was close until the last 5 minutes when Kansas started hitting shots to pull away. Michigan State sophomore Coen Carr threw down some electric dunks to give the Spartans energy. Spartan star guard Jayden Akins did not play his best shooting 12.5% from the field, but in the Spartans’ game against Samford, Akins had 25 points, which the Spartans needed to have when they played Kansas. It was not his best and the Spartans need him to score; when he is hot it is hard to slow him down. On the Kansas side Michigan transfer Hunter Dickinson had 28 points leading the team in scoring. The Spartans could not slow him down and that’s how it fell apart for the Spartans.
The second of two games was easily the best: Duke vs Kentucky. This game came down to the last minute. With under 5 minutes to go, Kentucky played great defense resulting in Cooper Flagg turning the ball over twice and giving the Wildcats an opportunity. It paid off well as they hit shots and took home the win. Kentucky shot 40% from behind the arc, which was way better than Duke’s 16%. Duke freshman Cooper Flagg played great until the last key moments of the game when he turned the ball over twice when Duke needed it most. Both teams shot a field goal percentage of 39% so it came down to the 3-point percentage. Cooper Flagg did have 26 points leading the team but it came down to the little things. On the other side, Kentucky played great, battled the whole game, and played excellent defense towards the end, forcing turnovers to come back and win the ball game. Their leading scorer was Andrew Carr, the Wake Forest transfer. The Wildcats should go up in the rankings after this win continuing their undefeated season.
This classic is great every year and these 4 teams compete every year to put on a show. Next year it should be even better!
