Men’s college basketball streaming guide: Kansas-UNC, Bama-St. John’s highlight big weekend

The first weekend of the college basketball season comes correct — freshman hype machines, blue-blood stalwarts, showcases at Madison Square Garden and the United Center. We won’t extract too much meaning from opening sets or nonconference draws. We will, however, celebrate the overall return to the oak floor. Cool stuff is happening atop it.

Newcomer Darryn Peterson is already gliding in Kansas blue. Fellow five-star Caleb Wilson looks smooth and springy with North Carolina. Rick Pitino has his grinders at St. John’s slapping the glass, while John Calipari’s retooled Arkansas gets right to the buckets. There’s a lot to watch for across Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Here are five lead games we’re eyeing:

Weekend viewing guide (Nov. 7-9)

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Fox is available for free over the air. All Fox networks stream on Fox One. Disney networks also stream on ESPN Unlimited.

YouTube TV and ESPN

As of Oct. 30, YouTube TV subscribers lost access to all Walt Disney Company channels — which include ABC and ESPN, plus the conference-specific ACC and SEC Networks. Disney and Google (YouTube’s parent company) failed to reach an updated agreement on carriage. While the dispute continues, YouTube TV users will need to sign up for a different pay TV carrier or ESPN’s direct-to-consumer service to watch games on any Disney-owned network.

No. 19 Kansas at No. 25 UNC

Friday, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN

An all-time pairing and a tribute to Roy Williams (18 head-coaching campaigns in Chapel Hill, 15 in the Phog). The Jayhawks are college basketball’s second-winningest program with 2,415 victories. The Tar Heels are third at 2,396. Somehow, they’ve only met 13 times, seven of which came in the NCAA Tournament.

Despite the historic gravity here, this duel is primed by two freshmen. Bill Self and Hubert Davis have game-changing prospects who will step into the spotlight. Kansas’ Darryn Peterson touts a velvet pull-up jumper and a zip-tie handle. The 18-year-old’s massive wingspan and on-ball instincts land him at No. 1 in The Athletic’s latest NBA mock draft. Peterson made his collegiate debut Monday versus Green Bay, and filled out his 22 minutes with 21 points, four rebounds, three assists and three stocks (steals+blocks). Friday marks his first high-level test.

The same goes for UNC’s Caleb Wilson, the futuristic 6-foot-10 forward with a cavernous defensive ceiling. Wilson poured in 22 points on 8-of-10 shooting in his debut against Central Arkansas.

Watch for: First-year phenoms repping big-time programs

No. 15 Alabama at No. 5 St. John’s

Saturday, noon ET, FS1

In a full decade under Anthony Grant and Avery Johnson, Alabama made the NCAA Tournament just twice (second-round exits both times). With Nate Oats on its sideline, this program has been ranked in the top three in the AP poll each of the past three seasons — with Sweet 16, Elite Eight and Final Four finishes. The Tide now try to break through behind sophomore Labaron Philon Jr. He’s on Naismith Player of the Year watch for his playmaking chops and coast-to-coast engine.

Alabama has been all about its scoring in recent runs. St. John’s is a notable inverse, prioritizing coverages and rebounding with a righteous fervor. Last season’s Red Storm were second in defensive rating but 111th on offense. That formula worked well enough to deliver the school’s first outright Big East title in 40 years. Senior forwards Dillon Mitchell and Zuby Ejiofor shoulder the lofty expectations this year. The Garden will be rocking and Pitino will be screaming as the Johnnies try to muck up Alabama’s perimeter flow.

Watch for: Two insurgents with opposing identities

No. 14 Arkansas at No. 22 Michigan State

Saturday, 7 p.m. ET, Fox

Razorback freshman Darius Acuff Jr. grew up in Detroit. He returns to his home state for a proving-ground moment at the Breslin Center. Acuff and running mate Meleek Thomas were McDonald’s All-Americans this spring; they combined for 43 points, eight boards and 11 dimes in their NCAA opener Monday night. Arkansas pulled two tourney upsets as a No. 10 seed last time around, but a losing SEC record (8-10) won’t cut it going forward.

Few coaches in the nation can match Calipari’s pull, but Tom Izzo is very much one of them. His Spartans seek a second consecutive Big Ten championship off the strength of senior paint prowler Jaxon Kohler and third-year point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. Michigan State’s faithful is coordinating a white-out for Saturday. The stands should feel March-ish in early November.

Watch for: Ranked teams and all-time coaches with something to saying

Oklahoma at No. 21 Gonzaga

Saturday, 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2

As constructed by Mark Few, the Gonzaga offense has averaged at least 82 points per game every season since 2016-17. This year’s Bulldogs also take on a nonconference gauntlet — Creighton (Nov. 11), Alabama and Maryland at the Players Era Festival (Nov. 24-26), Kentucky (Dec. 5) and UCLA (Dec. 13). NCAA leading assister Ryan Nembhard graduated, so super-senior Graham Ike should see heavy usage as the rest of the rotation solidifies. New point guard Braeden Smith joined from Colgate in 2024, but he spent the past year learning behind Nembhard. Time to see what he can do in this system.

Oklahoma has to reconfigure itself as well, because Porter Moser went all out in the transfer portal. Xzayvier Brown (St. Joseph’s) and Nijel Pack (Miami) both dropped 16 points in their Sooner debut, a 102-66 beatdown of Saint Francis. Tae Davis (Notre Dame) added 14 on 7-for-11 from the field.

Watch for: Late-night TV glow, plus some interesting transfers

Indiana vs. Marquette

Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, ESPN

The Tom Crean invitational! Crean coached Marquette from 1999 to 2008, then picked up at Indiana from ’08 through 2017. The current coaches reached national radars with their successes at small programs. Shaka Smart, in Year 5 with the Golden Eagles, was a point guard at Kenyon before transforming Virginia Commonwealth. Darian DeVries, new head of the Hoosiers, played for Northern Iowa and then went 150-55 at Drake.

Tucker DeVries (Darian’s son!) had an 18-point double-double in Indiana’s season opener against Alabama A&M. He and fellow senior Reed Bailey lead an old-school forward rotation. Through two games, Smart’s top five scorers are all returning players. Chase Ross, a four-year Golden Eagle, looks to finally break out as a 3-and-D wing. Sunday’s game is at the United Center in Chicago. By car, it’s about four hours from Bloomington and two from Milwaukee. Both fan bases should send delegates.

Watch for: Some rare roster continuity and a showdown of seniors

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