Who wins Kentucky vs. Michigan State?

The College basketball season is officially upon us, which means it’s Champions Classic time for four of the most dominant programs in the nation.

No. 4 Duke and No. 3 Kansas will square off at New York’s Madison Square Garden tonight, followed by No. 2 Kentucky and No. 1 Michigan State.

It will be the first meeting between the Wildcats and Spartans since the 2016 Champions classic when then-ranked No. 2 Kentucky dominated the No. 13 ranked Spartans with a 69-48 victory.

Tuesday will mark second time the teams match-up ranked No. 1 and No. 2, as in the 2013 Champions Classic, No. 2 Michigan State defeated No. 1 Kentucky. All-time Kentucky is 13-11 against Michigan State.

This year’s battle will feature two teams with national title hopes as both teams look to rebound after painful losses in last year’s NCAA Tournament. Kentucky lost in overtime to Auburn in the Elite Eight, while Michigan State lost to Texas Tech in the Final Four.

Both teams will enter play a bit banged up. Kentucky may be without center Nick Richards, who sprained his ankle during the preseason, and Dontaie Allen, who’s still rehabbing from a torn ACL while Michigan State will be without guard Joshua Langford and both Kyle Ahrens and Thomas Kithier are questionable.

Regardless, it should be a heavyweight fight at the world’s most famous arena as both teams look to make a big statement to open the 2019-20 season.

Will the Cats come out on top, or suffer their third straight Champions Classic defeat. Make your prediction in the poll below.