On Saturday afternoon, the Vanderbilt Commodores will travel to Norman, Oklahoma, in the middle of SEC play, to take on the Oklahoma Sooners. You might wonder why this is happening and the answer is ESPN.
In recent years, with ESPN looking for compelling college basketball content to fill the winter months, conference “challenge” events have become a popular thing. The ACC/Big Ten Challenge has been a thing for a while now, and it’s something that some college basketball fans like, with matchups happening over a few nights in early December. The Gavitt Games between the Big Ten and Big East are another one.