No. 2 Kentucky, No. 12 Kansas square off Tuesday

Doron Lamb gets right to the point: Kentucky's matchup with No. 12 Kansas is a statement game. The second-ranked Wildcats are starting a three-game road trip on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden against the Jayhawks in the second half of the State Farm Champions Classic doubleheader. No. 6 Duke plays Michigan State in the first game. It's a homecoming for several players. Lamb grew up in the New York City borough of Queens, while Michael Kidd-Gilchrist played on the other side of the Hudson River at St. Patrick High School in Elizabeth, N.J. Kansas guard Tyshawn Taylor is from Hoboken, N.J. and went to St. Anthony. After the game in New York, Kentucky heads to Uncasville, Conn., for two weekend games. Kansas will play in the Maui Invitational beginning Monday.