Must-watch games of the 2018-19 college hoops season

This is the first of a star-studded doubleheader in Indianapolis to get the 2018-19 season underway. The Spartans open 10th in the preseason AP Poll, while the Jayhawks begin as the No. 1 team in the land thanks to the hype surrounding Memphis transfer Dedric Lawson and five-star freshman Quentin Grimes. Kansas won the last meeting by 20 in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament.

The nightcap in Indy should be a doozy, Kentucky starts the season ranked second, while the Blue Devils are fourth. In a somewhat interesting turn of events, it's Duke that boasts the top freshman class in the country, complete with three potential 2019 lottery picks in R.J. Barrett, Cam Reddish and Zion Williamson. In addition to another stellar group of freshmen, the Wildcats might have the nation's best transfer in former Stanford star Reid Travis. These teams last met in November 2015, with Kentucky an 11-point victor.

A rematch of last season's national championship game, perhaps this one will be closer. It will also be the first major test for both teams as part of the Gavitt Tipoff. Freshman Villanova point guard Jahvon Quinerly will be one to watch, especially against a Michigan team that might rely on defense to create some early success.

After sharing the regular-season SEC crown in 2018 with Auburn, Tennessee has high expectations and this could be a good early test. It's uncertain what to think of Louisville at the moment, but on a neutral floor the Cardinals won't have the crowd to worry about. However, they must find a way to handle Tennessee's Grant Williams and Admiral Schofield at the NIT Season Tip-Off.

The last time these teams met, Kirk Hinrich and Nick Collison helped Kansas end Dwyane Wade and the Golden Eagles' run in the Final Four back in 2003. Fast forward 16 seasons, and Marquette believes it can make enough noise to reach the NCAA Tournament and perhaps make another run behind star Markus Howard. The winner will face either Tennessee or Louisville.

As part of the Las Vegas Invitational, North Carolina will try to snap a three-game skid to the Longhorns. Actually, the Tar Heels have dropped six of seven meetings with Texas, but they have not met since December 2015. Shaka Smart guided Texas to a bounce-back, 19-win campaign in 2017-18 and will be tested early this season. 

The second half of the Las Vegas Invitational pits a perennial national title contender in the Spartans and the preseason 21st-ranked Bruins, who have not been to the Final Four since a run of three straight appearances from 2006-08. UCLA might not have forward Cody Riley back by then, but playing this on a neutral court makes things more enticing.

Chris Mack has his work cut out as the first-year head coach at Louisville, and we might get a decent idea where he stands right out of the gate. By this time, the Cardinals will have faced Tennessee and either Kansas or Marquette then have trips to Seton Hall and Indiana in early December. The Spartans won the last two meetings, the most recent three years ago.

We know about Loyola's impressive run to the Final Four in 2018, but fans might forget it was the Ramblers who ended Nevada's own surge in the regional semifinals. Loyola beat the World Pack 69-68 thanks to Marques Towns' late three-pointer that gave his team a little breathing room. Townes and Clayton Cluster, who combined for 33 points, are back for the Ramblers, while seventh-ranked Nevada's front line of the Martin brothers and Jordan Caroline (56 combined points vs. Loyola in Sweet 16) will look for payback.

Talk about a showcase of freshmen. Barring injuries or any other issues, Duke likely will still be starting four freshmen during the ACC/BIG Ten Challenge contest. This also should be a great test for touted Indiana rookie Romeo Langford, who has a ton of pressure on his shoulders to help bring the Hoosiers back to prominence after missing the NCAA Tournament each of the last two seasons. 

Another ACC/Big Ten Challenge contest pits against each other a pair of teams that could get out slow early but be among the nation's top programs come March. Purdue has All-American Carsen Edwards leading the way but will need to find some others to complement him. The Seminoles, like the Boilermakers, open the season in the Top 25 but will be minus star Phil Cofer to kick things off.

This might be the marquee matchup of the annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The Wolverines will have already faced Villanova by this point, so they'll have a serious test under their belt. North Carolina will try to beat Michigan for a second consecutive season, after Luke Maye dropped 27 in an 86-71 victory at Chapel Hill last November.

Purdue won both regular-season meetings against Michigan in 2017-18 by a combined five points. However, the Wolverines got things done when it counted, beating the Boilermakers 75-66 to win their second straight Big Ten tournament title and continue a run that would take them to a national runner-up finish.

This might only be a rivalry in the sense that both schools are in the same state. Otherwise, it's been one-sided in Gonzaga's favor, but this is still special for the people in the state of Washington. The Bulldogs have won four in a row and 11 of the last 12 meetings between the two and enjoyed a 27-point victory last year. Rui Hachimura scored 12 points, and Killian Tillie had 11 for Gonzaga last season.

These are two classic programs trying to find their place in today's college basketball landscape. UCLA opens the season ranked in the Top 25, while Notre Dame is trying to return to the Big Dance after missing out last season. These schools last met on the hardwood in December 2009, with the Irish coming out on the winning end.

The main attraction of the Jerry Colangelo Classic should be a good one, and one in which Tennessee needs to end its recent struggles against Mark Few and the Zags. Gonzaga has won four straight in the series, most recently 86-76 in December 2016. It will be fun to watch the Vols' Grant Williams and Rui Hachimura of the Bulldogs go at it.

The last meeting between these two elite programs is one Bill Self and Jayhawk fans would like to forget. The Wildcats dominated from start to finish to rout Kansas 95-79 in last season's national semifinal. Most of the key participants from both squads won't be around for the rematch, but Nova's Eric Paschall, who scored a season-high 24 in that game, will.

The annual Crossroads Classic in Indianapolis is usually a great event between the top four Division I schools in the state of Indiana. The Irish had the best of this rivalry until 2016, when Matt Painter's Boilermakers won 86-81. It seems the schools are more evenly matched this season, so expect a good one.

Hoosier freshman Romeo Langford and top returning scorer Juwan Morgan will get the attention, but most college hoops fans know it's never wise to sleep on Butler. The Bulldogs have made four straight NCAA Tournaments and have a good one in guard Kamar Baldwin (15.7 points per game), who scored 14 points two years ago when they beat Indiana.

The Zags' memorable 2016-17 season ended with a 71-65 loss to North Carolina in the national championship game. The two will meet for the first time since then at Chapel Hill. To begin this season, Gonzaga is the better team on paper but that might not be the case one month into the campaign.

Nevada might have some high expectations following last season's run to the Sweet 16, but the best player on this floor 10 days before Christmas could be on the other team. South Dakota State forward Mike Daum was an honorable mention AP All-American each of the last two seasons. In 2017-18, the 6-foot-9 Daum averaged 23.9 points and 10.3 rebounds.

Looking for a pre-Christmas gift, this matchup should be perfect for any college basketball fan. John Calipari's Wildcats and Roy Williams' Tar Heels last met in their instant-classic 2017 regional final, which the Tar Heels won 75-73 on Luke Maye's jumper as time was winding down. Maye is back, and Wildcats fans still might be feeling the sting of that loss.

Go back to November 2007 for the last time these two programs met. This should be one of the better matchups in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge, as both squads begin the season in the Top 25. Now things could change come late January, so fans will have a great idea of just where both teams stand in terms of being national title contenders.

There's obviously no guarantee that Kansas and Kentucky will still be ranked first and second in the country, respectively, when this one rolls around. Still, the potential of an entertaining contest always exists between the two powers. The Jayhawks have won the last three meetings, most recently 65-61 last November. 

This will be the first meeting of the season between the ACC rivals, with the second to close out the campaign on March 9. Carolina and Duke have split the season series each of the last three years. This one will be at Cameron Indoor, where the Blue Devils have won two straight and five of the last six meetings.