photo by: AP Photo/Charlie Riedel

Kansas center Hunter Dickinson (1) celebrates with forward KJ Adams Jr. (24) after making a basket during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against North Carolina Friday, Nov. 8, 2024, in Lawrence. Kansas won 92-89.

Atlanta — Hot on the heels of a narrow victory over North Carolina, the Kansas men’s basketball team will have another chance to beat a prominent national program on Tuesday, as the Jayhawks take on Michigan State in the Champions Classic.

The game is set for 5:30 p.m. Central Time at State Farm Arena, home of the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks and a first-time host venue for the early-season event. Last year, KU beat Kentucky in Chicago, and the Jayhawks have won four straight Champions Classic matchups overall.

This year’s Spartans entered the year unranked, rather uncommon for 30th-year head coach Tom Izzo’s Final Four-laden tenure and quite a departure from last year’s short-lived preseason No. 4 ranking. That doesn’t mean KU can underestimate them, as they will require plenty of advance study.

“Playing Tom’s teams is different because he runs more sets than anybody in the country,” KU coach Bill Self said. “So getting your guys prepared for what they do, it’ll be a multi-day scout.”

Last year’s Michigan State campaign saw the Spartans slump late in conference play, knock out now-KU guard Shakeel Moore’s Mississippi State team in the first round of the NCAA Tournament but then lose by 16 to, as it happens, UNC.

If recent history is any indication, MSU may find itself in the AP Top 25 at some point this month. The Spartans have been ranked at some point in November each of the last 12 years.

This year’s squad lost a trio of double-digit scorers, headlined by second-team all-conference guard Tyson Walker. The Spartans are now relying on increased production from returning guards Jaden Akins and Jeremy Fears Jr. and forward Xavier Booker, joined by transfers Frankie Fidler (Omaha) and 7-foot Szymon Zapala (Longwood) in the starting lineup. High-rated freshman guard Jase Richardson is coming off the bench, and against Niagara on Thursday, junior forward Jaxon Kohler did the same and exploded for 20 points and 13 rebounds.

Unlike KU, which has already seen Arkansas and UNC and split those games (only the latter counted), Michigan State will get its first introduction to high-level competition after exhibitions against Northern Michigan and Ferris State and regular-season games against Monmouth and Niagara, all of which it won fairly convincingly.

KU and MSU have become fairly familiar foes over the years, and the Jayhawks have won the last three matchups, including an NCAA Tournament game in 2017 and a pair of Champions Classic tilts. Between Self’s stints at Illinois and KU, he is 8-6 against Izzo.

Michigan State Spartans (2-0) vs. No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks (2-0)

• State Farm Arena, Atlanta, 5:30 p.m. Central Time

• Broadcast: ESPN

• Radio: Jayhawk Radio Network (in Lawrence, KLWN AM 1320 / K269GB FM 101.7 / KMXN FM 92.9)

Keep an eye out

A little extra: In his impetuous younger days, center Hunter Dickinson once said, “You only go to Michigan State if you don’t get into Michigan.” That was when he was a Wolverine, and did battle with the rival Spartans twice a year. Dickinson split six matchups with MSU over the course of his three years at Michigan, and even set his career high for points (33) in one game against them on March 1, 2022, a mark that still stands. It’s safe to say the Spartan fans who trek out to Atlanta won’t be happy to see Dickinson. He may even bring some residual sentiment of his own into the matchup.

Will Moore make it?: Moore’s return to the court after missing approximately two months due to a broken bone in his foot during the offseason has been repeatedly delayed. He’s dealt with soreness at times, and Self said prior to the UNC game that Moore had not practiced since the previous Friday. Moore could eventually become one of KU’s top defensive pieces and its backup point guard, and Michigan State is his latest chance to dress (which he did not against UNC) and potentially play, though it might ultimately make sense for him to wait for a more comfortable setting in Saturday’s home game against Oakland.

Transition troubles: KU struggled at times to keep up with UNC on the fast break, and the Tar Heels’ play style tired the Jayhawks out. They’ll have to avoid a similar issue against the Spartans, as Self said, “They run it down your throat, too. They always have been great at that, as good as anybody in the country, so we got to tighten that up.”

Off-kilter observation

With KU’s streak of consecutive NCAA Tournament berths snapped, in a sense, by the NCAA-imposed vacation of its 2018 appearance, Michigan State now holds the longest active streak with 26 trips in a row.