Television - ESPN

Atlantic 10 National TV Schedule

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 06:59:06 -0700

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – Following a year in which eight men’s and five women’s basketball teams advanced to postseason play, the Atlantic 10 will again have a major presence on television as the league’s national television schedules were announced today.

“We are definitely energized and excited about our national TV schedule,” says Atlantic 10 Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade. “The non-conference match-ups are sure to be great games and the increase in nationally televised Conference games is a credit to our teams. Fans will have plenty of opportunities to see great A-10 men’s and women’s basketball this season.”

This year's men's national television package includes 11 games that will be carried on CBS College Sports Network, eight of which are league match-ups, while the Xavier-Duke contest on Dec. 20 will be aired on CBS. In addition, 11 women's contests will be aired on CBS College Sports Network, including six regular season Conference games and the semifinals of the 2009 Atlantic 10 Championship at Charlotte’s Halton Arena.

CBS College Sports Network (formerly CSTV) entered into a long-term, comprehensive agreement with the Atlantic 10 Conference in January, 2006. The agreement consists of all Conference-related media and marketing rights including television, national over-the-air and satellite radio, video-on-demand, Internet, broadband, wireless, and exclusive corporate sponsorship and licensing rights to all Atlantic 10 sports during the regular season and postseason championships, including the men's and women's basketball championships.

This year's national television coverage is also highlighted by the Atlantic 10's continued association with ESPN, which will televise 34 men's games and three women's games involving A-10 teams on its three networks as part of its college basketball package. Included is the title game of the 2009 Atlantic 10 Women’s Basketball Championship on Mar. 9 at Charlotte and the men's title game on Mar. 14 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J., both to be aired on ESPN2. In addition, the Massachusetts-Memphis game at midnight on Nov. 18 tips-off ESPN’s season-long coverage of college basketball, while league games will be shown weekly over the final five weeks of the season on either ESPN or ESPN2.

2008-09 ATLANTIC 10 MEN’S BASKETBALL NATIONAL TELEVISION SCHEDULE

CBS College Sports Network

Wed. Dec. 3 Auburn at Xavier 8:00

Sat. Dec. 6 Boston College at Massachusetts 8:30

Sat. Jan. 3 Vanderbilt at Massachusetts 5:00

Thu. Jan. 8 Saint Louis at Xavier 8:00

Thu. Jan. 15 Xavier at Rhode Island 8:00

Sun. Jan. 18 Charlotte at Saint Joseph’s 4:00

Thu. Jan. 22 Saint Louis at Temple 8:00

Thu. Jan. 29 Saint Louis at Dayton 8:00

Sun. Feb. 8 Saint Joseph’s at Massachusetts 3:00

Wed. Feb. 18 Saint Joseph’s at Saint Louis 10:00

Thu. Mar. 5 Saint Joseph’s at Temple 7:00

ESPN

Tue. Nov. 18 Massachusetts at Memphis 12:00

Tue. Nov. 18 Richmond at Syracuse 6:00

Tue. Nov. 25 Saint Joseph’s vs. Indiana/Notre Dame* TBA

Wed. Nov. 26 Saint Joseph’s at Maui Invitational# TBA

Fri. Nov. 28 Duquesne at Duke 3:00

Sat. Dec. 13 Tennessee at Temple 12:00

Sat. Dec. 13 Massachusetts at Kansas 2:00

*May be aired on ESPNU depending on outcome of previous game

#May be aired on ESPN2 or ESPNU depending on outcome of previous game

ESPN/ESPN2

Thu. Feb. 5 Temple at Xavier 7:00

Thu. Feb. 12 Temple at Saint Joseph’s 7:00

Thu. Feb. 19 Xavier at Charlotte 7:00

Thu. Feb. 26 Xavier at Saint Joseph’s 7:00

Thu. Mar. 5 Dayton at Xavier 9:00

Network designation to be determined at a later date

ESPN2

Fri. Nov. 21 Xavier vs. Fairfield/Virginia Tech* TBA

Sun. Nov. 23 Xavier at Puerto Rico Tip-Off Classic* TBA

Mon. Nov. 24 Saint Joseph’s vs. Texas 3:00

Fri. Nov. 28 Charlotte vs. Baylor/ Providence* TBA

Sun. Nov. 30 Charlotte at Anaheim Classic* TBA

Thu. Dec. 11 Saint Joseph’s at Villanova 8:00

Sat. Dec. 13 Xavier at Cincinnati 8:00

Sat. Dec. 20 Temple at Kansas 2:30

Sat. Jan. 17 Temple at Massachusetts 7:00

Sat. Jan. 24 Xavier at Louisiana State 8:00

Wed. Feb. 11 Xavier at Dayton 7:00

Sat. Mar. 14 Atlantic 10 Championship Final 6:00

*May be aired on ESPNU depending on outcome of previous game

ESPNU

Sun. Nov. 16 Rhode Island at Duke 4:30

Thu. Nov. 20 Xavier vs. Missouri 1:00

Fri. Nov. 21 Xavier vs. Fairfield/Virginia Tech* TBA

Thu. Nov. 27 Charlotte vs. Arizona State 9:00

Sat. Dec. 13 Virginia Commonwealth at Richmond 2:00

Sun. Dec. 14 Villanova at La Salle 7:00

Fri. Dec. 19 Wake Forest at Richmond 7:00

Tue. Dec. 23 Butler at Xavier 7:00

Sat. Jan. 24 Charlotte at Temple 6:00

Mon. Dec. 29 Temple at Villanova 7:00

Sat. Jan. 31 Massachusetts at Xavier 12:00

*May be aired on espn360.com depending on outcome of previous game

CBS

Sat. Dec. 20 Xavier vs. Duke 2:00

Poll: How Much of ESPN's 24 hour Tip-Off Marathon Will You Watch?

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 07:19:23 -0700

Memphis-UMASS To Kick Off ESPN Hoops Marathon

Press Release — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:13:00 -0700

The UMass at Memphis basketball game will be the first in a bonanza of 14 games on the ESPN Networks as part of the College Basketball Tip-Off Marathon on Nov. 18. The game at the FedEx Forum pits new UMass coach Derek Kellogg against his mentor and friend John Calipari, the former Minuteman bench boss. The game will begin after ESPN's Monday Night Football (Buffalo Bills at Cleveland Browns) and starts 23 hours of coverage.

A marathon of 14 college basketball games on Nov. 18 -- spread over 23 consecutive hours -- will help kick off the 2008-09 college basketball season on ESPN.The games open at midnight ET with national championship game runner-up Memphis hosting UMass, where Tigers head coach John Calipari once coached. It wraps up with the two winningest programs in college hoops history -- Kentucky and North Carolina -- meeting in Chapel Hill at 9 p.m. ET.

There are games featuring teams in 14 conferences and one women's game (Iowa at Kansas, 2 p.m. ET on ESPN). It also includes four NIT semifinals and two games in the CBE Classic, including defending national champion Kansas hosting Florida Gulf Coast (9 p.m. ET, ESPN U).

Every game on ESPN and ESPN2 will be simulcast on ESPN360.com.

There will be two studio shows, including a four-hour special beginning at 6 a.m. ET. College GameDay will be in Chapel Hill at 8 p.m. ET.

The hoops bonanza scheduled for ESPN networks on Nov. 18. All times ET:

Midnight: UMass at Memphis (ESPN)
2 a.m.: Fresno St. at St. Mary's (ESPN)
4 a.m.: Idaho St. at Hawaii (ESPN)
6 a.m.: College Hoops Tip-Off Special (ESPN)
10 a.m.: Penn at Drexel (ESPN)
Noon: Liberty at UNC-Asheville (ESPN)
2 p.m.: Iowa at Kansas (women) (ESPN)
4 p.m.: Centenary at Baylor (ESPN)
6 p.m.: Richmond at Syracuse (ESPN)
7 p.m.: NIT Regional Final-Purdue (ESPNU)
7:30 p.m.: NIT Regional Final-Boston College (ESPN2)
8 p.m.: College GameDay-Chapel Hill (ESPN)
9 p.m.: Kentucky at North Carolina (ESPN)
9 p.m.: Florida Gulf Coast at Kansas (ESPNU)
9:30 p.m.: NIT Regional Final-Oklahoma (ESPN2)
11:30 p.m.: NIT Regional Final-Arizona (ESPN2)

Poll: Who is the Best Team in the BracketBuster Pool?

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 07:47:46 -0700

Poll: What is the Best Game on ESPN's College GameDay Schedule?

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 10:28:52 -0700

ESPN College Basketball "GameDay" Schedule Announced

Press Release — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 08:24:45 -0700

AUSTIN, Texas -- On Wednesday, ESPN announced the eight sites for ESPN's weekly "College GameDay Driven by State Farm" men's college basketball series and the "Saturday Primetime" game-of-the-week telecast.

This is the fifth season for the college basketball version of the popular "College GameDay" series. The series features a pair of one-hour shows each Saturday at 11 a.m. Eastern (10 a.m. Central) and generally at 8 p.m. Eastern (7 p.m. Central), and it will originate from the site of the "Saturday Primetime" game for eight consecutive weeks. The shows will generally be presented from inside or around the arena.

Scheduled sites for College GameDay and Saturday Primetime

Jan. 17___________ Chapel Hill, N.C._______________________________ Miami (Fla.) at North Carolina
Jan. 24___________ South Bend, Ind._______________________________ Connecticut at Notre Dame
Jan. 31___________ Knoxville, Tenn.________________________________ Florida at Tennessee
Feb. 7____________ Spokane, Wash._______________________________ Memphis at Gonzaga
Feb. 14___________ Madison, Wis._________________________________ Ohio State at Wisconsin
Feb. 21___________ Austin, Texas_________________________________ Oklahoma at Texas
Feb. 28___________ Berkeley, Calif.________________________________ UCLA at California
Mar. 7____________ Morgantown, W.V.______________________________ Louisville at West Virginia

Poll: Should the NCAA Accept Beer Advertising?

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 00:09:37 -0700

Kellogg Replaces Packer as CBS/Final Four Announcer

Press Release — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 07:02:41 -0700

NEW YORK(AP) -- Billy Packer is out after 27 years as the lead college basketball analyst for CBS, making way for Clark Kellogg.

Kellogg has done game and studio analysis for CBS for 16 years. He will partner with Jim Nantz on his first Final Four in April. Packer did 34 consecutive Final Fours.

``With his unquestioned popularity and performance over the years, Clark Kellogg earned all rights to this top spot,'' Sean McManus, president of CBS News and Sports, said in a statement Monday. ``Like Billy Packer, Al McGuire or any of the most highly regarded broadcasters, Clark is an original voice with his own style and perspective.''

Kellogg said he was ``excited, humbled and quite pleased.''

``I appreciate the confidence Sean has expressed in affording me this new role,'' he said in a statement.

The 68-year-old Packer confirmed the move Sunday, through a CBS official, to The Miami Herald, which first reported the story. Packer is pursuing other basketball projects and declined further comment.

Packer, who played point guard for Wake Forest in the early 1960s, always spoke with authority. But his brusque, commanding style did not always go down well.

In 2006, he criticized the selection of four Missouri Valley Conference teams, before Bradley and Wichita State reached the round of 16. In 2004, Packer took umbrage at St. Joseph's getting the No. 1 seed.

In 2000, Packer bristled when asked to identify himself by two female students checking credentials before a game at Duke. One of the students, Jen Feinberg, quoted Packer as saying: ``You need to get a life. Since when do we let women control who gets into a men's basketball game? Why don't you go find a women's game to let people into?''

Packer later e-mailed an apology to the women.

Four years earlier, he apologized on the air after he was criticized for referring to then-Georgetown guard Allen Iverson as a ``tough little monkey.''

Unsubstantiated Speculation: NBA Draft Links & Rumors

Jason Tomassini — Tue, 27 May 2008 09:19:59 -0700

Nothing about the NBA Draft makes any sense. GMs intentionally lie about who they want to confuse the rest of the league, agents pull players out of workouts to manipulate their value and the Milwaukee Bucks continue to pretend they are trying to win. Mock drafts are always way off, the rumored trades never go down and the ones that do are always out of left field. There is no rhyme. There is no reason. And that is exactly why it is so great. Sports fans love to speculate, and the NBA Draft is 90 percent speculatastic. So in an exercise of almost certain futility, I bring you Unsubstantiated Speculation, a column containing all the relevant, completely false draft news links from around the Intertubes. Look for this once or twice a week leading up to the draft. Believe nothing.

Beasley/Rose
- Chad Ford looks at the Rose/Beasley pick, which is somewhat uninforming. I think Ford is great but I have a BIG problem with him continuously questioning Beasley's character and depicting Rose as squeaky clean. He has never backed up his questioning of Beasley besides that "he ran into trouble from time to time with practical jokes, pranks and general troublemaking," which is wildly vague and mildly defamatory. Both Rose and Beasley had very shady recruitments (Beasley with the Huggins thing, Rose with the Worldwide Wes thing) but neither had academic or legal troubles in college or high school. So based on, you know, actually important factors, it still remains a difficult decision. I think as a player Beasley should be the pick, but maybe there is a vagrant he killed that only Chad Ford knows about.

- For what it's worth, Bulls GM John Paxson has said it will be Rose or Beasley. Obviously not a surprise.

-This guy, who might be an idiot, thinks Rose.

- This was a pretty interesting piece from the Chicago Tribune where the reporter, KC Johnson, spoke with Blazers GM Kevin Pritchard and Magic GM Otis Smith about selecting first. There's a very good chance Smith only still has his job because he picked Dwight Howard over Emeka Okafor (the guy did pay Rashard Lewis 8 gillion dollars) and Pritchard still gets an "incomplete" on his. Obviously Paxson cannot blow this (and it's going to be very difficult to blow it). By the way, this KC Johnson fella appears to be the go-to reporter for the draft this year, much like John Canzano of The Oregonian was last year. In this notes column, he has the scoop on Avery Johnson possibly being the next Bulls' coach. Let me go on record and say that would be a disaster for both Chicago and Derrick Rose, who I bet Avery would pick. Avery is exactly like Scott Skiles, except more Katt Williams-ish.

- NBADraft.net's Aran Smith has Rose No. 1 in this mock draft but that's not the real news. No, the real news is that -- and I'm not sure how this is relevant to anything ever -- that Michael Jordan's Marcus and Rose are dating Chicago-area twins. I do not want to know how Smith obtained this info, but man that guy is good at his job.

- Everyone in Chicago has an opinion on this, including this Sun Times blogger, who is promptly assaulted in the comments section.

ESPN Coverage
- Let's knock out all the ESPN.com items now because ESPN has already done a great job covering the draft this year (yes, I said it).

Within the same Chad Ford Beasley/Rose thing from before, he suspects DeAndre Jordan has received a top five promise because his agent has declined some workouts or something. This is exactly the type of blind speculation I live for. And drafting DeAndre Jordan in the top five is exactly the type of thing that gets a GM fired. Which is coincidentally exactly the type of thing Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace thrives at.

- Here are a bunch of draft-related videos they have up there. Important things within: Kevin Love is no longer fat and has been hitting NBA threes and should be moving up draft boards; Bill Walker will stay in the draft is he thinks he is a first-rounder; Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni played with Danilo Gallinari's dad, meanwhile, Isiah Thomas likes spaghetti; OJ Mayo will never say anything interesting again; Marrese Speights and Joe Alexander look much better in workouts than in college.

- Ford takes a look at Walker, Brandon Rush, CDR and Jeremy Pargo at the A.T.T.A.C.K. gym in Chicago. He also loves Joe Alexander, which concerns me. Alexander seems exactly like the type of guy that looks way too good in individual workouts. And he thinks Chase Budinger is a lottery pick, which concerns me for many of the same reasons. (by the way, Chad Ford has roughly 36 players in his lottery.)

- JaVale McGee is the son of a WNBA player, which could not be more perfect. NEVER draft a skinny big man who was birthed from a WNBA player. I believe Red Auerbach first formed that rule.

- Gene Wojciechowski continues to write about controversial topics and a nation continues to be indifferent.

- Good to see Dana O'Neill is still writing even with the college hoops season over. She turns in another good piece on one-and-doners for next year.

Other Things Besides The Already-Redundant No. 1 Pick Debate
- Here is the first list of guys who will be at the Orlando Pre-Draft camp next week... but only to be interviewed.

- Memphis' Antonio Anderson has decided to go back to school, before participating in the draft process at all. I'm pretty convinced Anderson just declared for the draft to get out of Coach Cal's spring practice, headed to Cancun and then withdrew when he got back. Genius.

- Jerel McNeal is going back to Marquette, which is smart, but disappointing. I think McNeal can be a pro with his defense and athleticism. So what if he is a bit undersized and can't shoot, you only need to do one thing well to find a spot as a role player in the NBA (see: Varejao, Anderson).

- Josh Carter going back to Texas A&M, Alonzo Gee back to Alabama. That didn't take long.

- It appears Marrese Speights will stick in the draft, which is good news for teams in the 10-20 range who need a really good power forward. Apparently Speights has slimmed down and is routinely knocking down 18-foot jumpers. I think I'd rather have him than Joakim Noah at this point. Although Noah does bring other qualities to the table.

- Here's a good feature on Ryan Anderson, who I feel is being underrated by all the draft pundits. The guy is 6-10 and can score like crazy. And while he cannot guard anybody, neither can many NBA forwards. Again, the way role players work in the NBA (and all but about 6 or 7 players in this draft will basically be role players) is you fill a certain need for a team. Look athe Lakers, Jordan Farmar plays defense and hits open shots, VladRad shoots, Turiaf rebounds and acts like a crazy person, Vujacic shoots, defends and annoys people, Luke Walton passes and shoots. All of those guys were late picks that are incredibly effective in their specific role. And since there aren't going to be all-around studs around in the 20s, you might as well take a guy who can score off the bench and spot up on the perimeter like Anderson, defense be damned. He's only gonna play 20 minutes a game, tops, anyway... OR, just take Bill Walker or something.

- Speaking of Anderson, the blogger at BMac's Blog (presumably BMac himself) agrees with me, writing that Anderson's biggest draft flaw is not being European.

- Great interview from the great DraftExpress with CDR, who doesn't appear to be entertaining any idea of going back to school. (by the way, for everything you need on the draft, just go to DraftExpress, they are outstanding... but, uh, still read this site! hehe). With his handling, size and defensive ability, the first up-tempo team outside the top 10 should really consider taking CDR. Golden State at No. 14 would be crazy to pass on him.

- This Portland Tribune writer thinks the Blazers should trade the No. 13 pick (and so do I). With Oden coming in and Spaniard Rudy Fernandez coming over, Portland already has a full rotation of promising young guys. If they can turn the pick and one of the young guys for a solid point guard (Andre Miller, TJ Ford/Jose Calderon, Andre Miller), they should be a legit playoff team next year. Although, this guy thinks with a good number of lottery teams looking to trade (he cites "reports" on this, but that's a bit vague), the Blazers might get more talent by just keeping the pick. They need a shooter and unless Eric Gordon falls to No.13, there are really any shooters worth taking there.

- Some guy in Minnesota wants the T'Wolves to trade the pick because they suck at drafting players. Little does this man know, the Wolves are also very bad at trading for players. He claims there are no stars at No. 3, to which I ask: Why would a team trade you a star for a pick that cannot be used on one? Ugh, just take Mayo or Lopez.

- Here's a decent scouting report on Kosta Koufos except the writer says Koufos is soft because he is polite to people and that Daequan Cook is a prime example of self-assurance. I realize Cook was decent for Miami last year, but that comparison is completely insane. He also questions Koufos perimeter game, which we all know is nuts. I actually think Koufos' best skill is his ballhandling for a 7-footer, which he didn't get to show in college. I'd take him top 20. There's also a possibility he will play for Greece in the Olympics.

- And finally, George Hill, Pride of Ooey Pooey, is going to Disney World.

Poll: Rate ESPN's Chad Ford as an Analyst

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 15 May 2008 08:08:42 -0700