Kentucky vs. UCLA in the 2022 CBS Sports Classic

We now know who the Kentucky Wildcats will face in the 2022 CBS Sports Classic.

According to Jeff Goodman, Kentucky will take on the UCLA Bruins at Madison Square Garden. The other matchup will feature the North Carolina Tar Heels and Ohio State Buckeyes.

For what it’s worth, Goodman has UCLA ranked No. 3 in his way-too-early rankings for the 2022-23 college basketball season, while Kentucky checked in at No. 10.

The Wildcats have played North Carolina in three of the past four years of the CBS Sports Classic. They played Ohio State during the 2019-20 season and haven’t faced UCLA there since the 2017-18 season.

The Bruins will look quite different from the squad they had last season, as Johnny Juzang is off to the NBA Draft, while Cody Riley, Peyton Watson and Myles Johnson are also out.

However, UCLA will return Tyger Campbell and Jaime Jaquez Jr., while Jules Bernard is still testing the NBA waters but could return to school. The Bruins are also bringing in 5-star center Adem Bona, who Kentucky was a finalist for.

While the rosters have yet to be finalized, there’s no question this will be among the toughest regular-season games Kentucky will have next season. If Bernard comes back, it may very well be the toughest.