Friday was the official start of the college basketball season, but the matchup that everyone has circled on their calendar comes next week when No. 1 Kentucky faces No. 2 Michigan State in the Champion’s Classic on Tuesday in Chicago.

It will be a battle of a team voted No. 1 in the preseason based on outrageously high expectations for a roster of six high school All-Americans vs. a veteran-laden squad led by NBA prospects Gary Harris and Adreian Payne.

While players tend to talk trash prior to pivotal showdowns, coaches often do the opposite by paying compliments to the other team. That’s the formula John Calipari followed earlier this week when he said his team’s matchup vs. Michigan State was “unfair.”

“The issue becomes playing teams (like Michigan State) this early is not fair for my team,” Calipari said Thursday. “It may be fair for everybody else. But it’s no fair for my team. …It’s just not traditional in the sense everybody stays four years. So it’s not fair when we walk in and everybody else is more experienced.”

Welp, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo came up with the best possible response to Calipari’s seemingly complimentary remarks.

Izzo on John Calipari’s “no fair” comment: “I agree, I think he should forfeit. If Johnny doesn’t want to play it, I’ll take a win.” — Joe Rexrode (@joerexrode) November 9, 2013