Many of the teams expected to be a part of the N.C.A.A. tournament field will open the men’s basketball season Friday night in front of capacity crowds. At Duke, students began lining up Thursday night for the team’s home opener against Siena, scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday.
Columbia, in the rare position this season of being a favorite to capture the Ivy League title and its automatic N.C.A.A. tournament bid, tipped off Friday at 11 a.m. because the women’s volleyball team had booked the gym for Friday night.
The thought of Coach Mike Krzyzewski’s Blue Devils being pushed out of Cameron Indoor Stadium for any event is preposterous.