ESPN announced Thursday that the Tigers will face Kansas at Madison Square Garden (and on national television, obviously) December 7th. The game will be part of the annual Jimmy V Classic, named in honor of former North Carolina State coach, Jim Valvano. The Memphis game will be followed by a contest between Syracuse and Michigan State. All four teams are expected to be ranked among the country’s top 25.
Not only will the game be the third between Memphis and Kansas over the last four seasons (including the 2008 national championship), it will be a coming-out party of sorts for the Tigers’ heralded recruiting class, which includes top-20 recruits Will Barton, Joe Jackson (of White Station High School), and Jelan Kendrick.
The Tigers’ entry is quite a nod to the program, considering the other three teams all made the 2010 NCAA tournament, while Memphis was a second-round loser in the NIT.
