Kim Klement-USA Today Sports
The schedule for the 2013 Big 12/SEC Challenge was released on Tuesday afternoon and two games in particular stand alone among this year’s contests.
The biggest takeaway from this year’s event however, is the fact that the Big 12/SEC Challenge is merely that. The schedule begins on Nov. 14 and the final game doesn’t tip until Dec. 21. This isn’t a two or three day event that can grab headlines and attention, it’s a scattered mix of non-conference games between teams that just so happen to be facing off from the two separate leagues.
Either way, all attention will be on Dec. 10 when the Kansas Jayhawks and the nation’s top freshman and potential Player of the Year candidate Andrew Wiggins visit the Florida Gators in Gainesville. Just days before that tip-off, the Kentucky Wildcats and Baylor Bears will square off from Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. It’s technically a home game for the Bears, but the neutral court setting will certainly impact that contest. Baylor upset Kentucky a season ago at Rupp Arena in a game that eventually featured two teams who ended the year within the NIT.
Going back to that Florida-Kansas match-up however, there’s no denying it’s impact within the non-conference schedule. This is a can’t miss affair. From Wiggins to fellow freshman Wayne Selden and returning contributors Naadir Tharpe and Perry Ellis, the Jayhawks are stacked once again. Florida however, will have the home court advantage and the return of Patric Young inside once again makes the Gators a viable threat within the SEC.
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