CBS Sports Classic, and finally to Louisville to face in-state rival Louisville.. Kentucky will also host UCLA for the first time as well as Kansas in the Big 12/SEC Challenge. Tickets for Big Blue Madness, Kentucky's version of Midnight Madness went on sale and sold out on September 30. Big Blue Madness took place on October 14. The event debuted the team for the 2016–17 season. It included player introductions, a speech by Calipari, and a scrimmage. 2017–18 newcomers Nick Richards, a native of Kingston, Jamaica living in Queens, New York, was the first commitment in the Kentucky class. He committed to Kentucky on November 10 at a press conference at his high school. He chose Kentucky over Arizona and Syracuse. He was a consensus five star prospect, and was ranked the consensus No. 14 overall player by the four main recruiting services. P. J. Washington, a Dallas native attending school in Las Vegas, Nevada, was the second commitment in the Kentucky class. He committed to Kentucky on November 10 live on ESPNU. He chose Kentucky over North Carolina and UNLV. He was a consensus five star prospect, and was ranked the consensus No. 15 overall player by the four main recruiting services. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, originally from Hamilton, Ontario and attending school in Chattanooga, Tennessee, was the third commitment in the Kentucky class. He committed to Kentucky on November 14 through a message on Twitter. He was a consensus top fifty player, ranked No. 42 by the four main recruiting services Rivals, ESPN, Scout, and 24/7 Sports. Quade Green, from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was the fourth commitment in the Kentucky class. He signed his National Letter of Intent on November 16, the last day of the early signing period, but did not reveal his choice between Kentucky and Syracuse until an event at his high school on November 19 - with his mother Tamika Johnson by his side. He was a consensus top-25 player and ranked as a five-star player by the four main recruiting services Rivals, ESPN, Scout, and 24/7 Sports. Hamidou Diallo, a Queens native who graduated from a Connecticut school in spring 2016, announced on January 7, 2017 that he would enroll at UK for the start of the school's spring semester the following week. While he was eligible to play immediately, he redshirted the spring semester and is set to begin play as a freshman in 2017–18.