Tuesday’s college basketball schedule is one of the best of the non-conference portion of the season. And it starts early, as it all begins with the number one team in the country (Florida) going on the road to take on in-state foe Florida State. The Gators are coming off an impressive win over another in-state opponent, Miami, last week, while FSU is off to a 2-0 start. That game is one of many on the schedule that will make Tuesday’s action must-watch TV. The Champions Classic features a doubleheader: No. 5 Michigan State against No. 2 Duke, followed by No. 15 Kansas against No. 24 Kentucky, in one of the final games of the night. Between games in Chicago, No. 3 Illinois will travel to Lubbock, Texas, for a very intriguing matchup against No. 16 Texas Tech. The Fighting Illini are still without preseason All-American forward David Mirković due to injury, but veteran forward Andrej Stojaković has stepped up in his absence. Stojaković has scored 45 points in just 24 minutes played this season. UCLA and Virginia jump into AP Top 25 poll after big wins; Arizona and Arkansas fall in college basketball rankings Cameron Salerno Memphis will look to play a decisive role when it faces No. 22 Vanderbilt in Nashville. The Tigers opened the season with an impressive victory over Iowa State despite being double-digit underdogs. Memphis received the most votes in this week’s AP Top 25 poll among unranked teams. Ahead of what should be a fun night of basketball, here are predictions with analysis for Tuesday’s college basketball roster. All ET schedules No. 2 Duke vs. No. 5 Michigan State 7 p.m. on ESPN, fuboTV (try it for free): Duke has the advantage in the frontcourt and off the bench. That will be the difference in this game. It will take a very big game from Fears for Michigan State to win this one. This will be the first of many tests Duke faces and passes throughout the season. I wouldn’t be surprised if Duke won this game by double digits. That’s how much I love Duke’s depth. They can reach 10 in every game and wear teams down with new players coming off the bench. Pick: Duke -6.5 – CS Memphis at No. 22 Vanderbilt 7:15 pm on SEC Network+, fuboTV (try free): Memphis’ 2-0 start has been an incredible story, and now it hosts Vanderbilt. Fasten your seatbelt. This could be the toughest test of the season. Vanderbilt is ranked No. 7 in KenPom after destroying Bellarmine and Wake Forest. Vanderbilt’s defense has a chance to be elite this year. Defend without committing fouls. He has the personnel to protect the rim this year and also cover the three-point stripe. Chandler Bing, Tyler Tanner and TO Barrett are three more defenders who will cover Memphis’ red-hot point guard Jayden Reid. If Memphis is going to win this one, it better be someone else because Reid is in for a long night. This is the game Memphis really misses big star Nemanja Popovic, who will be out for the next four games. I just don’t know how they score efficiently. Vanderbilt has so many guys for Reid. He has great forwards like Sebastian Williams-Adams or Berke Buyuktuncel for Tylik ‘Bully’ Weeks’ bully game. Memphis will be a popular bet this week, but it’s all Vandy at this place. You have a lot of advantages here. Pick: Vanderbilt -15 – IT No. 3 Illinois at No. 16 Texas Tech 8 pm on Peacock. Illinois is without All-American hopeful David Mirkovic and sharpshooter Jake Davis. Texas Tech is without All-American forward JT Toppin, but 5-of-5 senior Jamichael Stillwell is cleared to return after a Lubbock judge granted him a temporary restraining order. These teams aren’t on the personnel front yet, but both have shown flashes of fire-breathing offenses. Texas Tech has guards for days and point of attack defense will be an issue for Illinois. If you can’t protect the ball against Texas Tech, that simply opens up space for sharpshooters like Donovan Atwell (130 3-pointers at 46%) to clear. Illinois will do its best to hang on to shooters and force Texas Tech to take a million jumpers, but the Illini’s defensive warts and inability to consistently rebound were on full display against Cincinnati and Baylor in the preseason. Illinois’ best defense is an offense that makes you take the net again and again. The Illini are playing at a zoom-zoom pace. They are running for 40 minutes. Pick-and-rolls are out. It’s all about finding the mismatch and getting to work with expert spacing, tons of cuts, and even more offensive rebounds. Five-star freshman Quentin Coleman (85% shooting two) and senior wing Andrej Stojakovic (68% shooting two) have had ridiculous starts to the season. When Texas Tech big man Bassala Bagayoko isn’t on the court, Illinois can be in line for a layup against a terribly small and undermanned Texas Tech frontcourt. Illinois has numerous avenues to create good shots against this smaller Texas Tech team, but they’re also relying on a lot of freshmen right now. Coleman, Ethan Brown, Lincoln Williams and Lucas Morillo are firmly in the rotation while Davis and Mirkovic recover. Illinois is the bigger and better team in the long run, but Texas Tech’s veterans could have a field day if this young Illinois team doesn’t communicate at a high enough level defensively in its first real test in an extremely hostile place. This is Texas Tech or nothing for me, especially with Stillwell back. Pick: Texas Tech +1.5 – Isaac Trotter No. 15 Kansas vs. No. 24 Kentucky 9:30 pm on ESPN, fuboTV (try it for free) – The entire Kansas team had only been practicing together for just three (!) weeks. Then starting guard Melvin Council Jr. broke his foot on Monday, forcing Bill Self to recalibrate again. Kansas has the most talented roster on paper, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there are still some issues to work out that weren’t exposed in games against solid mid-majors like Fordham and Middle Tennessee. Is Kentucky good enough to press those hot spots? Maybe. Kentucky’s three-point shooting is the way to surprise. Kansas isn’t shaping up to be a high-volume three-point shooting team with Trey Kaufman-Renn, Tre White, Tyran Stokes and Keanu Dawes on the floor together. On the other hand, Milan Momcilovic is the best shooter in this sport. If Kentucky can rebound and run, it is very capable of drilling double-digit 3-pointers. That will rarely be within the range of potential outcomes for Kansas, who will rely heavily on paint points and free throws to score efficiently. Kansas star guard Melvin Council Jr. will be out until Big 12 play begins after breaking his foot in practice Cameron Salerno Council’s injury likely means Self will put in a big effort, sacrificing some rhythm to get even more rebounds. A first line of Dawes, Stokes and Kaufman-Renn may not make many 3-pointers, but it creates some awkward matchups for Kentucky. Can Momcilovic defend Stokes without fouling a freshman who is a foul machine? Does Kentucky abandon that idea entirely and put a bulldog veteran guard like Zoom Diallo on Stokes, stay home with everyone else and try to goad Stokes into taking a million shots on a smaller defender? Making Stokes one-dimensional is better than allowing him to shine as a scorer and creator. Kansas’ offensive rebounds seem inevitable, but Kentucky’s shooting and length make it very alive in this one. Their trembling guards just need to play nice on this one, or the UK will be dead on arrival. Pick: Kentucky +4.5 – IT No. 1 Florida at Florida State 6 pm on ESPN2, fuboTV (try free): The matchup I was watching closely during Florida’s opening night matchup against Miami was one in the frontcourt. Miami is one of the few teams with the talent to take on Florida’s frontcourt. Still, Florida overwhelmed Miami and won that game by double digits despite playing a C+ game. What it’s like to watch Florida State center Marcis ‘Baby Shaq’ Ponder: Why freshman star is must-watch TV Cameron Salerno Can Florida State star freshman center Marcis Ponder contain Florida’s first line? We will see. If this game were played at a neutral site, I would lean heavily toward Florida. But it is not. Florida State’s home gym is going to be great. Is FSU going to win this game against the best team in college basketball? Probably not. But FSU should be able to keep this game close already covered. Pick: Florida State +10 – Cameron Salerno
