The 2021-22 college basketball season officially tips off on Tuesday, Nov. 9.
While Division I games will take place across the country, events such as the Champions Classic will also showcase teams on Tuesday. This year’s event is located at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The first game will be played between No. 3 Kansas and Michigan State. Following this game, No. 9 Duke will take on No. 10 Kentucky, which is the only matchup on Tuesday between two ranked teams.
There’s two other ranked matchups during the opening week of college basketball. On Friday night, No. 4 Villanova will take on No. 2 UCLA. On Saturday night, No. 5 Texas will play at No. 1 Gonzaga.
There will be various Top 25 games throughout the week. ESPN will show a total of three primetime games on Tuesday and Sunday, and ESPN’s other channels (such as ESPN2, ESPN3 and ESPN+) will show games all week. Channels designated for each conference (such as SEC Network or ACC Network) will be showing games all week as well.
Sporting News breaks down how to watch the Top 25 matchups in college basketball this week and more. Here’s everything you need to know.
MORE: Watch college basketball games live with fuboTV (7-day free trial)
College basketball schedule today
Here’s every opening week college basketball game involving top 25 teams.
(All nationally broadcast games bolded)
Tuesday, Nov. 9
| Game | Time (ET) | TV Channel |
| Mount St. Mary’s at No. 4 Villanova | 4:30 p.m. | FS1, fuboTV |
| Arkansas at No. 17 Ohio State | 6:00 p.m. | ESPN2, fuboTV |
| Central Connecticut at No. 24 UConn | 6:30 p.m. | N/A |
| No. 3 Kansas vs. Michigan State | 7:00 p.m. | ESPN, fuboTV |
| Houston Baptist at No. 5 Texas | 7:00 p.m. | Longhorn Network, fuboTV |
| Bellarmine at No. 7 Purdue | 7:00 p.m. | N/A |
| Texas Southern at No. 13 Oregon | 7:00 p.m. | PAC12, fuboTV |
| UT Martin at No. 18 Tennessee | 7:00 p.m. | SEC Network, fuboTV |
| Loyola Maryland at No. 19 UNC | 7:00 p.m. | ACC Network, fuboTV |
| Quinnipiac at No. 21 Maryland | 7:00 p.m. | N/A |
| Sienna at No. 23 St. Bonaventure | 7:00 p.m. | ESPN+, fuboTV |
| Tennessee Tech at No. 12 Memphis | 8:00 p.m. | ESPN+, fuboTV |
| Hofstra at No. 15 Houston | 8:00 p.m. | ESPN+, fuboTV |
| Mercer at No. 16 Arkansas | 8:00 p.m. | SEC Network+, fuboTV |
| Morehead State at No. 22 Auburn | 8:00 p.m. | SEC Network+, fuboTV |
| Jackson State at No. 11 Illinois | 8:30 p.m. | BTN, fuboTV |
| Dixie State at No. 1 Gonzaga | 9:00 p.m. | N/A |
| Louisiana Tech at No. 14 Alabama | 9:00 p.m. | SEC Network, fuboTV |
| Navy at No. 25 Virginia | 9:00 p.m. | ACC Network, fuboTV |
| No. 10 Kentucky vs. No. 9 Duke | 9:30 p.m. | ESPN, fuboTV |
| CSU Bakersfield at No. 2 UCLA | 11:00 p.m. | PAC12, fuboTV |
Wednesday, Nov. 10
| Game | Time (ET) | TV Channel |
| Buffalo at No. 6 Michigan | 6:30 p.m. | BTN, fuboTV |
| Pennsylvania at No. 20 Florida State | 9:00 p.m. | ACC Network, fuboTV |
Thursday, Nov. 11
| Game | Time (ET) | TV Channel |
| George Washington at No. 21 Maryland | 6:30 p.m. | BTN, fuboTV |
Friday, Nov. 12
| Game | Time (ET) | TV Channel |
| Army at No. 9 Duke | 7:00 p.m. | ACC Network, fuboTV |
| Robert Morris at No. 10 Kentucky | 7:00 p.m. | SEC Network, fuboTV |
| Niagara at No. 17 Ohio State | 7:00 p.m. | N/A |
| Radford at No. 25 Virginia | 7:00 p.m. | ACC Network Extra, fuboTV |
| Tarleton at No. 3 Kansas | 8:00 p.m. | ESPN+, fuboTV |
| San Diego State at No. 14 Alabama | 8:00 p.m. | SEC Network+, fuboTV |
| Rice at No. 15 Houston | 8:00 p.m. | ESPN+, fuboTV |
| UL Monroe at No. 22 Auburn | 8:00 p.m. | SEC Network+, fuboTV |
| Indiana State at No. 7 Purdue | 8:30 p.m. | BTN, fuboTV |
| Incarnate Word at No. 8 Baylor | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN+, fuboTV |
| Arkansas State at No. 11 Illinois | 9:00 p.m. | N/A |
| Brown at No. 19 UNC | 9:00 p.m. | ACC Network, fuboTV |
| SMU at No. 13 Oregon | 11:00 p.m. | PAC12, fuboTV |
| No. 4 Villanova at No. 2 UCLA | 11:30 p.m. | ESPN2, fuboTV |
Saturday, Nov. 13
| Game | Time (ET) | TV Channel |
| Coppin State at No. 24 UConn | 12:00 p.m. | FS2, fuboTV |
| Vermont at No. 21 Maryland | 2:00 p.m. | N/A |
| Gardner-Webb at No. 16 Arkansas | 3:00 p.m. | SEC Network+, fuboTV |
| NCCU at No. 12 Memphis | 7:00 p.m. | ESPN+, fuboTV |
| Prairie View A&M at No. 6 Michigan | 8:00 p.m. | BTN, fuboTV |
| Campbell at No. 9 Duke | 8:00 p.m. | ACC Network+, fuboTV |
| No. 5 Texas at No. 1 Gonzaga | 10:30 p.m. | ESPN2, fuboTV |
Sunday, Nov. 14
| Game | Time (ET) | TV Channel |
| East Tennessee State at No. 18 Tennessee | 12:00 p.m. | SEC Network, fuboTV |
| No. 20 Florida State at Florida | 1:00 p.m. | ESPN, fuboTV |
| Canisius at No. 23 St. Bonaventure | 5:00 p.m. | ESPN+, fuboTV |
How to watch, live stream college basketball games
Seven games featuring a Top 25 ranked team will be broadcast nationally during the opening week of college basketball. Those games will appear on ESPN, ESPN2 and Fox Sports 1. Live streaming options include ESPN+, ACC Network+, SEC Network+ and fuboTV, which offers a 7-day free trial.
