Michigan State, Duke prepare for ‘memory-making’ Champions Classic

EAST LANSING – Tom Izzo knows what a win over Michigan means to Michigan State’s football program.

He also knows what a Champions Classic victory does for the Spartans’ basketball team and fans. Be it Duke or Kentucky or Kansas, that win just feels different.

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“I’ve said all along that there’s memory-making moments in my job. And one of the biggest memory-making moments is when we started the [Champions Classic],” Izzo said Monday, Nov. 9. “And we got the chance now.”

No. 5 MSU faces No. 2 Duke in Chicago on Tuesday (7 p.m., ESPN). It is the 16th iteration of the annual event and the first time back at United Center since the Spartans lost there to the Blue Devils in the 2023 event, 74-65.

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo shakes hands with Duke head coach Jon Scheyer after 66-60 loss at Breslin Center in East Lansing on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025.

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“I’m more excited to see how our team is and how we get better, how we improve, and just overall what we need to do and how we can keep getting better,” All-.American point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. said after MSU’s 91-61 win over Toledo on Thursday. “I think I look more at it as how can Michigan State basketball keep improving and getting better game by game.”

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MSU (2-0) defeated Kentucky last year in New York to improve to 6-9 in the four-team field that annually rotates opponents. However, the Spartans’ lone winning record in the Champions Classic is against the Wildcats (3-2). They are just 1-4 against the Blue Devils, who are tied with the Jayhawks at 9-6 overall in the event.

“It’s been one of the highlights of the schedule every year just because of the teams that are playing, the fanfare it brings, the alums it brings – all the good things it brings,” Izzo said.

Izzo is 3-15 all-time against the Blue Devils, though he has yet to beat fifth-year coach Jon Scheyer in two tries. That includes a 66-60 loss at Breslin last…

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Publish date : 2026-11-10 10:04:00

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