Duke, UConn and Arizona highlight MSG college basketball schedule featuring 14 NCAA champs

NEW YORK (AP) — Duke, Arizona and Arkansas are among 14 men's college basketball teams scheduled to play at Madison Square Garden this season that have won an NCAA championship.

Plus the UConn women, with 12 national titles all to themselves.

Visits by Virginia, Houston, Kansas and Kentucky also highlight a regular-season slate featuring 11 men's programs in the preseason AP Top 25. Five schools ranked in the top 10, and seven in the top 13, will tip off inside “The World’s Most Famous Arena."

No. 2 Duke, No. 4 UConn and of course, No. 13 St. John's, are set to make multiple appearances well before the Big East Tournament and NCAA Tournament come to MSG in March.

It all begins Nov. 8 when St. John's hosts Iona — where Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino revived his career before jumping to the Red Storm. A week later, the Johnnies welcome an old Big East rival in Syracuse — with new coach Gerry McNamara.

Hall of Fame coach John Calipari brings No. 12 Arkansas to The Garden to face Indiana on Nov. 17, then big man Motiejus Krivas and No. 5 Arizona arrive Dec. 5 to take on St. John's.

Three days after that, the annual Jimmy V Classic to support cancer research and awareness opens with Duke against Georgia, followed by No. 10 Houston versus No. 20 Alabama.

The weekend before Christmas offers five games in three days, starting with a Saturday tripleheader.

No. 17 Kansas plays Ohio State, and No. 23 Kentucky takes on North Carolina in the CBS Sports Classic beginning at noon on Dec. 19.

Clear out the building, restock concessions and open the gates again a few hours later as a new crowd arrives to watch St. John's in its Big East opener against DePaul at 8:30 p.m.

The next afternoon, coach Dan Hurley and UConn, paced by senior guard Silas Demary Jr., meet No. 9 Virginia in the SentinelOne Showdown. And on Dec. 21, Duke returns to the Big Apple for a rematch with No. 19 Texas Tech — their third MSG date since 2018.

Last December, JT Toppin and the Red Raiders rallied from 17 points down in the second half to stun the third-ranked Blue Devils, 82-81.

St. John's, coming off its first Sweet 16 trip in 27 years, is scheduled to play 13 regular-season home games at The Garden — its most since the 1950-51 season. The others are ticketed for Carnesecca Arena on campus in Queens.

In addition, the Johnnies will play all their conference home games at MSG for the first time. After back-to-back sweeps of the Big East regular-season and tournament titles the past two years, their next New York City showdown with rival UConn is Friday night, Jan. 29.

The women’s teams will head into Manhattan, too, when Hall of Fame coach Geno Auriemma and the second-ranked Huskies visit St. John's at The Garden on Jan. 24.

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