MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State will travel to St. John's on Saturday, Dec. 7 as part of the sixth edition of the BIG EAST/Big 12 Battle, the two conferences announced on Thursday morning (April 25).
The game will be broadcast on one of FOX's properties and will take place at either Madison Square Garden or St. John's on-campus arena – the 5,602-seat Carnesecca Arena.
This will be just the third meeting between the programs and the first in more than 60 years since St. John's knocked off K-State, 72-65, on Dec. 10, 1965, in the Sunflower Doubleheader at Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kan. The Wildcats won the first meeting, 63-50, at Ahearn Fieldhouse on Dec. 16, 1961.
The 11 matchups were jointly determined by the two conferences and will be played on various campuses starting on Tuesday, Dec. 3 and running through Sunday, Dec. 8. The BIG EAST will host six games in 2024-25 after the Big 12 played host to six games in 2023-24. Only 11 of the 16 Big 12 teams will compete in the final event with the exceptions of Arizona, Arizona State, UCF, Colorado and Utah.
K-State is 1-3 all-time in the BIG EAST/Big 12 Battle, snapping a 3-game losing streak with a 72-71 overtime victory over Villanova this past season. The Wildcats have also played Marquette in 2019 and 2021 and Butler in 2022.
Overall, K-State is 26-27 all-time against BIG EAST opponents, including wins against Providence and Villanova in 2023-24. However, the Wildcats are just 4-16 on the road against BIG EAST foes, including seven straight losses, with the last win coming at Creighton on Dec. 5, 1987.
In the first season under Hall of Fame head coach Rick Pitino, St. John's posted a 20-13 overall record, including a fifth place finish in the BIG EAST with an 11-9 mark, and were one of the last teams left out of the NCAA Tournament in 2023-24. The Red Storm won six in a row before losing to eventual national champion UConn in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Tournament.
K-State finished the 2023-24 season with a 19-15 record, including a tie for ninth in the Big 12 with an 8-10 mark, and advanced to the NIT. Among the Wildcats' 19 victories were 4 over Top 25 teams, including 3 in the Top 10. The team has won 45 games in head coach Jerome Tang's tenure, including consecutive postseason appearances.