NEW YORK (WNCN) — The Duke Blue Devils men’s’ basketball team is heading back to “The World’s Most Famous Arena” for the eleventh time in the last 12 seasons.
On Tuesday, the program announced the Blue Devils are set to play Illinois in the SentinelOne Classic at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 22, 2025. The event features a matchup between two teams that made the Elite Eight last season.
Duke’s last trip to the Garden was a 78-70 win over then No. 10 Baylor on Dec. 20, 2023 in last season’s SentinelOne Classic. The Blue Devils have a 41-18 record overall in games at the arena and are currently on a seven-game winning streak there. The program has an overall record of 99-34 at all NBA arenas.
According to the school’s athletic department, the game against Illinois will be Jon Scheyer’s 27th contest at Madison Square Garden as a Duke player, assistant coach and head coach.
Last year, the Blue Devils’ season ended with a loss to rival NC State in the Elite Eight. This year, in addition to returning starters Tyrese Proctor and Caleb Foster, the Blue Devils 2024-25 roster boasts the top recruiting class in the country, headlined by 6’9″ Cooper Flagg, a five-star prospect ranked the No. 1 recruit in his class.
The Fighting Illini, last year’s Big Ten conference winners, are coming off the program’s first Elite Eight appearance since 2005. Their 2023-24 record of 29-9 was good enough for the third-most wins in the program’s history.
Duke finished last season at No. 9 in the AP Top 25 poll, while Illinois ended the year at No. 6.
Tickets for this year’s SentinelOne Classic will go on sale soon.