By: Kansas State University Athletics
MANHATTAN, Kan. (kstatesports.com) – The Kansas State men’s basketball team will open the 2023-24 season against USC in the 2023 Hall of Fame Series Las Vegas on Monday, Nov. 6 in a quadruple-header at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
In addition to the contest between the Wildcats and Trojans, the quadruple-header will include women’s games between defending NCAA national champion LSU and Colorado as well as USC and Ohio State, along with a men’s matchup between Georgia and Oregon.
Tickets for the event are scheduled to go on sale in mid-July. On-sale date, game times and television broadcast information will be released at a later date.
The matchup will mark the first time in more than 20 seasons that K-State will open the season away from home since a 73-64 loss to BYU at the Paradise Jam on Nov. 23, 2002, in St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. It will be just the 10th season opener away from home since 1970, including the fourth neutral site matchup.
K-State is 4-1 all-time against USC, including an 80-67 win in the last meeting with the Trojans in the first round of the 2008 NCAA Tournament. This will be the second meeting in Las Vegas after a 68-55 win by the Wildcats at the 2006 Las Vegas Holiday Classic on Dec. 22, 2006.
K-State has made several visits to Las Vegas in recent years, including the 2006 Las Vegas Holiday Classic and the 2008 and 2017 Las Vegas Invitationals held at the Orleans Arena. The Wildcats have also played the hometown Runnin’ Rebels in Las Vegas in 2009 and 2019. This will be the school’s first game in T-Mobile Arena.
Led by 11th-year head coach Andy Enfield, USC posted a 22-11 overall record, including a tie for second place in the Pac-12 with a 14-6 mark, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive season in 2022-23. He has led the Trojans to 95 wins over the last 4 seasons, including a trip to the Elite Eight in 2020-21.
USC is expected to return starters Kobe Johnson (9.2 ppg.) and Joshua Morgan (7.0 ppg.), along with former 5-star 7-foot-1 big man Vince Iwuchukwu (5.4 ppg.), who played in only 14 games with 5 starts after recovering from a medical emergency. The Trojans also have the nation’s 4th-ranked recruiting class that includes ESPN’s top-ranked incoming freshman Isaiah Collier as well as 20th-ranked freshman Bronny James.
Led by Naismith National Coach of the Year Jerome Tang, the Wildcats compiled a 26-10 record in 2022-23, which included a tie for third place in the Big 12 and the school’s 13th trip to the Elite Eight. The 26 wins are the third-most in school history and the most since winning 27 in 2012-13.
The rest of the 2023-24 men’s basketball schedule will be released as it becomes official.
HALL OF FAME SERIES
The Hall of Fame Series, which is owned and operated by Position Sports, is a collection of multi-game, singular events that will showcase several of the top collegiate basketball teams in exciting non-conference matchups played both domestically and abroad. In March, the Phoenix-based company and the Hall of Fame reached an exclusive 10-year agreement.
Among the other Hall of Fame series include a tripleheader on Nov. 10 at Charlotte’s Spectrum Center, a doubleheader on Dec. 9 at Toronto’s Coca-Coca Coliseum, a tripleheader on Dec. 16 at San Antonio’s AT&T Center and a quadruple-header on Dec. 20 at Phoenix’s Footprint Center involving various men’s and women’s programs.
NAISMITH BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME
Located in Springfield, Massachusetts, the city where basketball was born, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame is dedicated to promoting, preserving, and celebrating the game of basketball at every level — men and women, amateur and professional players, coaches, and contributors — both domestically and internationally. For more information on the Basketball Hall of Fame organization, its museum, and events, visit hoophall.com.
T-MOBILE ARENA (Las Vegas)
T-Mobile Arena, the 20,000-seat venue located on the Las Vegas Strip between Park MGM and New York-New York, opened April 6, 2016. The arena hosts more than 100 events annually including major headline entertainment, awards shows, UFC, boxing, basketball and other sporting events, family shows and special events. T-Mobile Arena also is the home of the 2023 Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights as well as UFC’s exclusive Las Vegas arena destination.
ABOUT POSITION SPORTS
Position Sports, established in 2005, is a premium event production and brand marketing firm that specializes in event operations, activation development, media relations, and digital engagement. Over the years, Position Sports has worked with many of the world’s leading brands, including Nike, Jordan Brand, Red Bull, the Basketball Hall of Fame, ESPN Events, USA Basketball, Upper Deck, MLB, and T-Mobile in nearly every major U.S. city and on a global scale.
