NBA:
College Bowl Games, Men’s College Basketball, and more:
- Extensive College Football Bowl Coverage Continues Through Holiday Week
- Men’s College Basketball: 20 Men’s Hoops Games in Four Days including debut of Bill Walton
- Fields Announced for Next Season’s ESPN Regional Television Men’s Basketball Tournaments
- espnW.com: Player of the Week, Weekly Wrap, and Headliners
ABC & ESPN Combine to Present All Five NBA Christmas Day Games
contact: ben.cafardo@espn.com and kristen.m.hudak@espn.com
ESPN’s Christmas Day coverage will tip off at 12 p.m. ET with the Brooklyn Nets hosting the Boston Celtics in Brooklyn’s first Christmas Day appearance on ESPN. At the conclusion, KIA NBA Countdown will debut a new studio set at 2:30 p.m. with Magic Johnson, Bill Simmons, Jalen Rose and Michael Wilbon.
ABC’s blockbuster doubleheader begins at 3 p.m. with the Los Angeles Lakers and Kobe Bryant hosting the New York Knicks and Carmelo Anthony. Mike Breen, analyst Jeff Van Gundy and reporter Heather Cox will call the game – their first of two Christmas Day games at the Staples Center. The second game of the ABC doubleheader features an NBA Finals rematch of the Miami Heat, led by LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, and the Oklahoma City Thunder and Kevin Durant.
ESPN will resume its coverage with a primetime doubleheader starting with Bulls-Rockets at 8 p.m. and Nuggets-Clippers at 10:30 p.m. For a portion of the late game, Emmy and Tony Award-winning actor Billy Crystal will join the booth to discuss the Clippers.
Select games are available on ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio and WatchESPN with full details below. In addition, ESPN3 will deliver live coverage of the Staples Center changeover on Christmas Day, as the crew changes the arena from the Lakers set to the Clippers set.
ABC & ESPN NBA Christmas Day schedule
| Time (ET) | Game | Commentators | Network(s) |
| 12 p.m. | NBA Christmas Special Presented by State FarmBoston Celtics at Brooklyn Nets | ESPN:Mark Jones, Doris Burke, Chris BroussardESPN Deportes: Alvaro Martin, Carlos Morales | ESPN, ESPN Deportes, WatchESPN |
| 2:30 p.m. | KIA NBA Countdown | Magic Johnson, Bill Simmons, Jalen Rose, Michael Wilbon | ABC |
| 3 p.m.(ESPN Radio at 2 p.m.) | NBA Christmas Special Presented by State FarmNew York Knicks at L.A. Lakers | ABC:Mike Breen, Jeff Van Gundy, Heather CoxESPN Radio: Dave Flemming, Will PerdueESPN Deportes: Ricardo Ortiz, Manu Martin | ABC, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes |
| 5:30 p.m. | NBA Christmas Special Presented by State FarmOklahoma City Thunder at Miami Heat | ABC: Mike Tirico, Hubie Brown, Lisa SaltersESPN Radio: Kevin Calabro, Dr. Jack RamsayESPN Deportes: Alvaro Martin, Carlos Morales | ABC, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes |
| 8 p.m. | NBA Christmas Special Presented by State FarmHouston Rockets at Chicago Bulls | ESPN:Dave Pasch, Jon BarryESPN Deportes: Ricardo Ortiz, Manu Martin | ESPN, ESPN Deportes, WatchESPN |
| 10:30 p.m. | NBA Christmas Special Presented by State FarmDenver Nuggets at L.A. Clippers | ESPN: Mike Breen, Jeff Van Gundy, Heather Cox | ESPN, WatchESPN |
Extensive College Football Bowl Coverage Continues Through Holiday Week
contact: michael.c.humes@espn.com
ESPN’s extensive college football bowl coverage – 34 bowl games, highlighted by all five of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) matchups, including the Discover BCS National Championship (No. 1 Notre Dame vs. No. 2 Alabama) – will continue through the holiday season.
A Christmas Eve matchup at the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl featuring Fresno State vs. SMU, at 8 p.m. on ESPN and ESPN Radio kick starts the holiday week games on ESPN. Following are the bowl games and commentators for this week.
A complete schedule with commentator assignments is available on ESPN Media Zone.
| Date | Time (ET) | Game/Commentators | Network |
| Mon, Dec 24 | 8 p.m. | Sheraton Hawaii Bowl: Fresno State vs. SMU ESPN: Carter Blackburn, Kelly Stouffer & Kaylee Hartung Radio: Marc Kestecher & Pete Najarian |
ESPN & ESPN Radio |
| Wed, Dec 26 | 7:30 p.m. | Little Caesars Bowl: Western Kentucky vs. Central Michigan Mark Neely, Ray Bentley & Jemele Hill |
ESPN |
| Thu, Dec 27 | 3 p.m. | Military Bowl Presented by Northrop Grumman: No. 24 San Jose State vs. Bowling Green Bob Wischusen, Danny Kanell & Quint Kessenich |
ESPN |
| 6:30 p.m. | Belk Bowl: Cincinnati vs. Duke Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards |
ESPN | |
| 9:45 p.m. | Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl: Baylor vs. No. 17 UCLA ESPN: Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Jenn Brown Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad |
ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN 3D | |
| Fri, Dec 28 | 2 p.m. | AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl: Ohio vs. Louisiana-Monroe Dave Lamont, Kelly Stouffer & Cara Capuano |
ESPN |
| 5:30 p.m. | Russell Athletic Bowl: Rutgers vs. Virginia Tech ESPN: Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Maria Taylor Radio: Adam Amin, Tom Luginbill & Brett McMurphy |
ESPN & ESPN Radio | |
| 9 p.m. | Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas: Minnesota vs. Texas Tech ESPN: Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza Radio: Tom Hart, John Congemi & Niki Noto |
ESPN & ESPN Radio | |
| Sat, Dec 29 | 11:45 a.m. | Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl: Rice vs. Air Force ESPN: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Lewis Johnson Radio: Eamon McAnaney, David Diaz-Infante & Paul Carcaterra |
ESPN & ESPN Radio |
| 3:15 p.m. | New Era Pinstripe Bowl: West Virginia vs. Syracuse ESPN: Chris Fowler, Jesse Palmer & Tom Rinaldi Radio: Marc Kestecher, Jack Ford & C.J. Papa |
ESPN & ESPN Radio | |
| 4 p.m. | Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl: Navy vs. Arizona State Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Jenn Brown |
ESPN2 | |
| 6:45 p.m. | Valero Alamo Bowl: No. 23 Texas vs. No. 13 Oregon State ESPN: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Quint Kessenich Radio: Mark Neely, Ray Bentley & Kaylee Hartung |
ESPN & ESPN Radio | |
| 10:15 p.m. | Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl: TCU vs. Michigan State ESPN: Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad |
ESPN & ESPN Radio |
Men’s College Basketball: 20 Men’s Hoops Games in Four Days including debut of Bill Walton
contact: michael.c.humes@espn.com
ESPN’s men’s college basketball schedule for this week will include 20 matchups from December 27 to December 30, highlighted by 14 games on Saturday, Dec. 29.
Overall, ESPN2 will televise three of the top eight teams and new ESPN analyst, and UCLA legend; Bill Walton will make his college basketball debut for ESPN, working No. 7 Missouri at UCLA, on Friday, Dec. 28, at 10 p.m. ET.
ESPN2 will also televise No. 1 Duke against Santa Clara on Saturday, Dec. 29, at noon and No. 8 Cincinnati against New Mexico on Thursday, Dec. 27, at 9 p.m.
ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN3 schedule through December 29
| Date | Time (ET) | Game / Commentators | Network |
| Thu, Dec 27 | 9 p.m. | New Mexico at No. 8 Cincinnati John Saunders & Bob Knight |
ESPN2 |
| Fri, Dec 28 | 7 p.m. | NJIT at Villanova Dave Leno & Tim O’Toole |
ESPN3 |
| 7 p.m. | Stony Brook at Seton Hall Mike Crispino & Jim Spanarkel |
ESPN3 & BIG EAST Network | |
| 8 p.m. | Baylor at No. 13 Gonzaga Roxy Bernstein & Miles Simon |
ESPN2 | |
| 10 p.m. | No. 7 Missouri at UCLA Dave Flemming & Bill Walton |
ESPN2 | |
| Sat, Dec 29 | Noon | Santa Clara at No. 1 Duke Carter Blackburn & Sean Farnham |
ESPN2 |
| Noon | Western Michigan at No. 23 NC State Lou Canellis & Dereck Whittenburg |
ESPNU | |
| 12:30 p.m. | Delaware State at Maryland Byron Kerr & Glenn Consor |
ESPN3 | |
| 2 p.m. | No. 20 UNLV at North Carolina Jon Sciambi & Jay Bilas |
ESPN2 | |
| 2 p.m. | Virginia Tech at BYU Rich Cellini & Steve Cleveland |
ESPNU | |
| 2 p.m. | William & Mary at Purdue Mike Couzens & Sean Kearney |
ESPN3 | |
| 2 p.m. | Holy Cross at Boston College John Brickley & Malcolm Huckaby |
ESPN3 | |
| 3 p.m. | Valparaiso at Murray State Mike Gleason & Darrin Horn |
ESPN3 | |
| 4 p.m. | Duquesne at Penn State Tim Neverett & Cory Alexander |
ESPN3 | |
| 6 p.m. | Xavier at Tennessee Clay Matvick & Jimmy Dykes |
ESPNU | |
| 7 p.m. | Fordham at Georgia Tech | ESPN3 | |
| 7:30 p.m. | Washington at Connecticut Bob Picozzi & Bill Raftery |
ESPN2 | |
| 8 p.m. | No. 18 Butler at Vanderbilt Jim Barbar & Seth Greenberg |
ESPNU | |
| 10 p.m. | UC Santa Barbara at Cal State Fullerton Kanoa Leahy & Corey Williams |
ESPNU | |
| Sun, Dec 30 | 6 p.m. | Tulane at Alabama Rich Hollenberg & Carolyn Peck |
ESPNU |
Fields Announced for Next Season’s ESPN Regional Television Men’s Basketball Tournaments
contact: rachel.l.margolis@espn.com
The 2013 tournament fields for five early-season tournaments – Charleston Classic, DIRECTV Classic, Old Spice Classic, Puerto Rico Tip-Off and Diamond Head Classic – to be held around the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays in destination cities have been announced. All five tournaments are owned and operated by ESPN Regional Television (ERT), a subsidiary of ESPN.
All five tournaments feature a bracket-format with 12 games over three days. Each team will compete in one game per day, advancing through the bracket. The two teams that remain undefeated throughout will face off in a championship game on the final day of competition.
Additional teams, final brackets and television will be announced at a later date. Full release
espnW.com: Player of the Week, Weekly Wrap, and Headliners
contact: amanda.decastro@espn.com
espnW.com continues naming its national player of the week every Monday throughout the women’s college basketball season. Texas A&M junior center Kelsey Bone receives this week’s top honor, shooting 85 percent — 39 of 46 — from the field, and averaging 27.6 points and 10.3 rebounds at the World Vision Classic tournament. Other highlights include contributor Graham Hays’ weekly wrap, a blog post from Standord’s Chiney Ogwumike, and the 12-part series, espnW Headliners, continues highlighting up-and-coming athletes who embody confidence, strength and talent in their respective sports.
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