Fang's Bites

Sports Media Weekly Podcast No. 28

Time for another edition of the Sports Media Weekly Podcast. Keith Thibault of Sports Media Journal and I begin our segment with what else? The Tiger Woods interviews with ESPN and Golf Channel. We discuss whether we would accept the five minute restrictions imposed by the Woods camp. Keith and I also talk about how ESPN’s Tom Rinaldi and Golf Channel’s Kelly Tilghman fared in their inquisitions of Tiger. And Keith goes off on Monday Morning Quarterbacking by local sports radio talk show hosts regarding the questions asked.

Then, Keith and I review CBS’ production of the NCAA Tournament this past weekend. We rate our favorite announcing teams and we question why CBS inexplicably cutaway from the last :00.4 seconds from the Xavier-Pittsburgh game on Sunday.

We also go over TNT’s plans to have the Inside the NBA crew leave the studio this week and call the Miami-Chicago game on Thursday plus we go over ESPN’s plans for MLB Opening Day.

Our guest this week is the great Chuck Wilson who recently made his triumphant return to ESPN Radio.

Keith and I ask Chuck on how he returned to ESPN Radio after he was let go back in 2005. We also go over the early days of ESPN Radio which he helped to launch in 1992. Chuck opines on sports radio today and the hosts who shout and yell to get attention. And we have Chuck discuss his days in Providence when he was a host at WEAN, WICE and WPRO. I’ll also link you to one of Chuck’s passions, his blog, Effort and Attitude.

You can listen to the podcast on iTunes by searching for Sports Media Journal. You can find our past editions of the podcast there. The easiest way to hear or download the podcast is by

Westwood One Radio’s Official Press Release on NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 & Regional Finals

Earlier this week, I posted the announcers for Westwood One Radio as it covers the NCAA Tournament this weekend. Well, I now have the official press release from Westwood One for its coverage and it looks like this.

WESTWOOD ONE PRESENTS ANNOUNCER TEAMS FOR THE 2010 NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

- Regional Semi Final & Regional Final Rounds-

New York, NY — March 24, 2010 -- Westwood One/NCAA Radio Network is proud to present the announcer crews for the Sweet 16 and the Elite 8 of the 2010 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.

Regional Semi-Final Round – March 25-26th

Thursday, March 25 – 7:00 PM ET

@ Salt Lake City

Butler vs. Syracuse & Xavier vs. Kansas St, Ted Robinson & Bill Frieder

@Syracuse

Washington vs. West Virginia & Cornell vs. Kentucky, Ian Eagle & P.J. Carlesimo

Friday, March 26 – 7:00 PM ET

@St. Louis

Tennessee vs. Ohio State & Northern Iowa vs. Michigan State, Kevin Harlan & John Thompson 

@Houston

St. Mary’s vs. Baylor & Purdue vs. Duke, Kevin Kugler & Pete Gillen

Regional Final Round – March 27-28th

Saturday, March 27 – 4:30 PM ET 

@Salt Lake City

Winner of Butler/Syracuse vs. Winner of Xavier/Kansas St., Ted Robinson & Bill Frieder

@Syracuse

Winner of Washington/W Virginia vs. Winner of Cornell/Kentucky, Ian Eagle & P.J. Carlesimo

Sunday, March 28 – 2:00 PM ET 

@St. Louis

Winner of Tennessee/Ohio State vs. Winner of Northern Iowa/Michigan State, Kevin Harlan & John Thompson

@Houston

Winner of St. Mary’s/Baylor vs. Winner of Purdue/Duke, Kevin Kugler & Pete Gillen

For the complete schedule of games, airtimes and affiliate stations visit http://www.westwoodone.com/ncaa.

And there are your time and schedules for Westwood One Radio.

ESPN, ESPN2 & ESPN Radio Pick Up Six, Count ‘Em, Six Opening Day MLB Games

In one of the good things ESPN does with Major League Baseball, the Alleged Worldwide Leader picks up a combined six Opening Day games for the Mothership and ESPN2. In addition, ESPN will debut the new Monday Night Baseball announcing crew led by Fang’s Bites 2009 Award Winner for Best MLB play-by-play, Dan Shulman. I’ve noticed ESPN will utilize three man booths for many games including all Sunday Night and Monday Night games. I’m not a fan of three man booths in baseball, but I think ESPN is trying to freshen things up on the broadcasts. Anyway, here’s the Opening Day schedule for ESPN and ESPN2.

ESPN2 to Present MLB Opening Night – Yankees/Red Sox – April 4

ESPN, ESPN2 & ESPN Radio Combine for Six Opening Day Games

ESPN will begin its 21^st season of Major League Baseball coverage – 80 regular-season telecasts across ESPN and ESPN2 – with the telecast of Opening Night. The defending World Champion New York Yankees visit their rival Boston on Sunday, April 4, at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2 HD. The telecast will mark the debut of the new Sunday Night Baseball commentator team of Jon Miller, Joe Morgan and Orel Hershiser. Miller, the winner of the Baseball Hall of Fame’s 2010 Ford C. Frick Award, and Morgan, a Hall of Famer, have worked together in the SNB booth since 1990. The Yankees/Red Sox game will also be available via ESPN Radio, ESPN360.com (which will be renamed ESPN3.com on April 4) and ESPN Mobile TV. 

Baseball Tonight, with long-time host Karl Ravech (16^th season), analysts Nomar Garciaparra, John Kruk and Bobby Valentine and reporters Tim Kurkjian and Buster Olney, will preview Opening Night with a live show from Fenway Park at 7 p.m. on ESPN2. ESPN Radio’s Opening Night broadcast – with coverage beginning at 7 p.m. – will include commentary by Jon Sciambi and Dave Campbell.

In addition to Opening Night, ESPN networks will combine to feature six Opening Day games on Monday, April 5:

• Philadelphia at Washington, with coverage beginning at 12 p.m., on ESPN Radio – Sciambi and Campbell will describe the action;
• St. Louis at Cincinnati, 1 p.m. on ESPN HD, ESPN3.com and ESPN Mobile TV – Brent Musburger will call the game with analyst Rick Sutcliffe;
• Cleveland at Chicago White Sox, 2 p.m. on ESPN2 HD – Dan Shulman, Aaron Boone and Chris Singleton will call the game;
• Chicago Cubs at Atlanta, 4 p.m. on ESPN HD, ESPN3.com and ESPN Mobile TV – Sean McDonough will call the game with analyst Hershiser;
• San Francisco at Houston, 7 p.m. on ESPN2 HD – Miller and Morgan will provide commentary;
• Minnesota at Los Angeles Angels, 10 p.m. on ESPN2 HD – Steve Levy will call his first MLB telecast for ESPN, pairing with analyst Buck Showalter.

Opening Day will feature the debut of the regular Monday Night Baseball booth – Shulman, Boone and Singleton. Wednesday Night Baseball will once again feature Dave O’Brien and analyst Sutcliffe, with Garciaparra occasionally joining them for a three-man booth.

Baseball Tonight will provide highlights, news and information at 10 p.m. on ESPN and following the Twins/Angels game on ESPN2. Baseball Tonight will feature a deep roster of commentators this season including Boone, Garciaparra, Kruk, Kurkjian, Olney, Eduardo Perez, J.P. Ricciardi, Singleton, Showalter, Valentine and Dave Winfield.  In addition to Ravech, Steve Berthiaume will host episodes of Baseball Tonight.

There you have it.

Is Matt Winer Taking Over Ernie Johnson’s Office?

This video comes from the fine people at Turner Sports. With Ernie Johnson, Jr. out of his familiar Atlanta confines and in Chicago to call the Heat-Bulls game on Thursday, NBA TV host Matt Winer will step in into the Inside the NBA studios. Here’s a video showing Matt moving into EJ’s office.

Thanks to Turner Sports for making this video available.

Primetime & Late Night Viewing Picks

College Basketball
men’s

NIT Quarterfinals
URI at Virginia Tech – ESPN2, 7 p.m.
Dayton at Illinois – ESPN2, 9 p.m.

English Premier League
Portsmouth vs. Chelsea – Fox Soccer Channel, 3:45 p.m.
Manchester City vs. Everton – Fox Soccer Plus, 3:45 p.m.
Aston Villa vs. Sunderland – Fox Soccer Plus, 6 p.m. (same day coverage)

MLB
Philadelphia vs. Atlanta – ESPN, 1 p.m.
Baltimore vs. St. Louis – Fox Sports Midwest, 1 p.m.
Houston vs. New York Mets – SNY, 1 p.m.
Arizona vs. Chicago White Sox – MLB Network/Comcast SportsNet Chicago, 4 p.m.
Kansas City vs. Anaheim Angels – Fox Sports West, 4 p.m.
Washington vs. New York Yankees – MASN, 7 p.m.
Seattle vs. San Diego – MLB Network/Cox 4, 10 p.m.
Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Oakland – Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, 10:30 p.m.

NBA
Denver at Boston – ESPN/Comcast SportsNet New England, 7 p.m.
Los Angeles Lakers at San Antonio – ESPN, 9:30 p.m.

NHL
New York Islanders at New York Rangers – MSG Plus/MSG Network, 7 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Washington – NHL Network (US)/FSN Pittsburgh/Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, 7 p.m.
Montreal at Buffalo – TSN/RDS/MSG Buffalo, 7:30 p.m.
St. Louis at Detroit – Fox Sports Midwest/Fox Sports Detroit, 7:30 p.m.
Los Angeles at Colorado – Fox Sports West/Altitude, 9 p.m.
Anaheim at Vancouver – TSN/Fox Sports Prime Ticket, 10 p.m.

NHL On The Fly – NHL Network, 9:30 p.m.

Entertainment
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains – CBS, 8 p.m.
Mythbusters: Soda Cup Killer (season premiere) – Discover, 9 p.m.
The Inbetweeners – BBC America, 9:30 p.m.
Inside NASCAR – Showtime, 10 p.m.
Late Show with David Letterman – CBS, 11:35 p.m.

ESPN Announces Its 2010 MLS Schedule

Here we go, the entire 2010 Major League Soccer schedule for ESPN2 and the other platforms in the ESPN family of networks. JP Dellacamera will call most of the matches along with John Harkes. Here is the schedule which includes three postseason games and the MLS Cup.

ESPN’s 2010 Major League Soccer Schedule

ESPN coverage of Major League Soccer’s 15^th season will begin Thursday, March 25 at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2, ESPN360.com, ESPN Deportes, and ESPN Deportes Radio with a live telecast of the Philadelphia Union at Seattle Sounders FC from Qwest Field in Seattle, Wash. The ESPN MLS Game of the Week will be the inaugural MLS match for Philadelphia as it faces the breakout expansion franchise from a year ago that opened the 2009 season on ESPN. The Union-Sounders FC match will be part of MLS First Kick, a series of eight season-opening weekend matches March 25-27. 

 

MLS First Kick will continue Saturday, March 27 at 7 p.m., on ESPN, ESPN360.com, ESPN Deportes and ESPN Deportes Radio, with the first league match at the new, state-of-the-art Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J., when the New York Red Bulls host Chicago Fire. 

In all, ESPN networks will combine to televise 26 regular season matches, the MLS All-Star Game, three playoff matches, and the 2010 MLS Cup. ESPN Mobile TV, ESPN’s 24/7 mobile sports television network, will provide live coverage of select MLS matches during the season. MLS season highlights: 

• All 26 regular season matches will be available in high definition, simulcast on ESPN360.com and aired on ESPN Deportes. In addition, ESPN Deportes Radio will broadcast regular season matches and the 2010 MLS All-Star Game; 
• Opening night will feature Seattle Sounders FC, one of the biggest stories from 2009. The Sounders set a league attendance record in its inaugural MLS season (2009); 
• ESPN will televise two matches – first league match at the Red Bull Arena, Saturday, March 27 at 7 p.m. ET (Chicago Fire at NY Red Bulls); and the 2010 MLS Cup, Sunday, Nov. 21 at 8:30 p.m. ET; 
• D.C. United visits Seattle Sounders FC (Thursday, June 10 at 10 p.m.ET ) in the last match before the league’s first two-week, in-season break for the group phase of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa; 
• The SuperClásico, Major League Soccer’s only intra-city rivalry (derby) matches in 2010, exclusively on ESPN2, ESPN360.com and ESPN Deportes (Thursday, April 1 and Sunday, Oct. 3); 
• A special MLS Game of the Week primetime doubleheader on Thursday, April 1 on ESPN2, ESPN360.com, ESPN Deportes, and ESPN Deportes Radio: 2009 MLS Cup champion Real Salt Lake at Houston Dynamo (9 p.m. ET) and this season’s first SuperClásico – Chivas USA at Los Angeles Galaxy (11 p.m. ET); 
• ESPN2 will televise the grand opening of the ninth soccer stadium built for an MLS team – PPL Park in Chester, Pa., when Philadelphia Union host Seattle Sounders FC on Sunday, June 27 at 5 p.m. ET. 

JP Dellacamera (play-by-play) and John Harkes (analyst) return as the lead commentator team for MLS matches on the ESPN networks. Glenn Davis and Kyle Martino will also be featured as match commentators. Alexi Lalas, former U.S. Men’s National team defender and a pioneer MLS player who became a team general manager/president in the league, will anchor ESPN’s studio coverage of the MLS as an analyst. Former Fox Soccer Channel studio host and play-by-play commentator Max Bretos, who joined ESPN as an ESPNEWS anchor in February, will make his ESPN soccer debut Sunday, March 27 (Chicago Fire at New York Red Bulls, 7 p.m.). Rob Stone, who was named this month as an ESPN 2010 FIFA World Cup reporter, will continue to host MLS events and serve as a reporter on select matches. Allen Hopkins, also an ESPN 2010 FIFA World Cup reporter, will continue in his role as the primary sideline reporter for MLS matches.

The ESPN Deportes Spanish-language commentator team will include Richard Mendez (play-by-play) and former MetroStars forward Giovanni Savarese (analyst).  The ESPN Deportes Radio teams will include Jorge Ramos (play-by-play) and Hernan Pereyra (analyst); Jairo Moncada (play-by-play) and analysts Jorge Ottati and Alvaro Riet; and Marcelo Masanti (play-by-play) and analysts Manuel Kun and Giovanni Scavia.  

ESPN’s MLS Game of the Week, the network’s season-long presentation of the top professional soccer league in the United States, returns with most matches on Thursday nights. 

2010 “ESPN MLS GAME OF THE WEEK” SCHEDULE

 All Times Eastern; Schedule Subject To Change 

Date	Time (ET)	Networks	Match
Thu 3/25	9:30 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Philadelphia Union at Seattle Sounders FC
Sat 3/27	7 p.m.	ESPN/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Chicago Fire at New York Red Bulls
Thu 4/1	9 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Real Salt Lake at Houston Dynamo
Thu 4/1	11 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Chivas USA at Los Angeles Galaxy
Thu 4/15	7 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Philadelphia Union at Toronto FC
Thu 4/22	8 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Seattle Sounders FC at FC Dallas
Wed 5/5	7 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Kansas City Wizards at D.C. United
Thu 5/13	9 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Houston Dynamo at Real Salt Lake
Thu 5/20	8 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Columbus Crew at New York Red Bulls
Thu 5/27	8 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	FC Dallas at Chicago Fire
Thu 6/10	10 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	D.C. United at Seattle Sounders FC
Sun 6/27	5 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Seattle Sounders FC at Philadelphia Union
Thu 7/1	7 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Houston Dynamo at Toronto FC
Thu 7/8	9:30 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Real Salt Lake at Chicago Fire
Thu 7/15	8 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Seattle Sounders FC at D.C. United
Thu 7/22	10:30 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	San Jose Earthquakes at Los Angeles Galaxy
Thu 8/5	8 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Columbus Crew at Philadelphia Union
Sun 8/8	9 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	New York Red Bulls at Chicago Fire
Sun 8/29	10 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	D.C. United at Chivas USA
Thu 9/9	11 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Real Salt Lake at Seattle Sounders FC
Fri 9/24	11 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	New York Red Bulls at Los Angeles Galaxy
Wed 9/29	11 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Chicago Fire at San Jose Earthquakes
Sun 10/3	8 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Los Angeles Galaxy at Chivas USA
Thu 10/7	8 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Los Angeles Galaxy at Philadelphia Union
Fri 10/15	11 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	Chivas USA at Seattle Sounders FC
Thu 10/21	7:30 p.m.	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	New England Revolution at N Red Bulls
Thu 10/26	TBD	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	MLS Playoffs
Thu 11/4	TBD	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	MLS Playoffs
Thu 11/11	TBD	ESPN2/ESPN360.com/ESPN Deportes	MLS Playoffs

* ESPN Deportes Radio will broadcast all regular season matches listed and the 2010 MLS All Star Game  

That’s it.

Golf Channel’s Tournament Schedule

Here is the stuff that will be seen on Golf Channel this week. I know that last sentence is poorly written. I’m tired.

This week, all four golf tours will be seen in one way or another.

Golf Channel Live Tournament Coverage: March 25-28

Live Tournament and News Coverage from the Arnold Palmer Invitational

2010 LPGA Tour Season Begins Domestically with Kia Classic Champions Tour Heads to the Dominican Republic 

Arnold Palmer Invitational

Dates: March 25-28

Venue: Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge, Orlando, Fla.

Airtimes (Eastern):

Thursday         3 – 6 p.m. (Live) / 8:30 – 11:30 p.m. (Replay)

Friday              3 – 6 p.m. (Live) / 8:30 – 11:30 p.m. (Replay)

Golf Channel Live Tournament Broadcast Team:

Kelly Tilghman (Play by Play)

Frank Nobilo (Analyst)

Gary Koch (Tower)

Brad Faxon (On Course)

Mark Rolfing (On Course)

Roger Maltbie (On Course)

Dottie Pepper (On Course)

Steve Sands (Interviews)

Broadcast Notes:

• Aimpoint, Golf Channel’s Emmy-award winning graphics technology that predicts the line of a putt and where players must aim to hole-out, will be on display at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
  ·         Golf Central and Golf Central Pre Game will broadcast live and on-site at Bay Hill all week in front of live, studio audiences on-set.

Airtimes (Eastern):

Thursday         6:30 – 8:30 p.m. (Live)

Friday              6:30 – 8:30 p.m. (Live)

Saturday          6:30 – 9:30 p.m. (Live)

Sunday            7 – 9:30 p.m. (Live)

Golf Channel Live Tournament Broadcast Team:

Tom Abbott (Play by Play)

Judy Rankin (Analyst)

Kay Cockerill (Tower)

Charlie Rymer (Tower)

Val Skinner (On Course)

Stephanie Sparks (On Course, Interviews)

Broadcast Notes:

• The Kia Classic presented by J Golf is the first LPGA Tour event contested in the U.S. for 2010.
• Judy Rankin will make her 2010 debut as lead analyst for Golf Channel’s LPGA Tour coverage.
• Golf Channel’s Tom Abbott will make his play-by-play host debut.  Abbott will be Golf Channel’s lead play-by-play voice for the 2010 LPGA Tour season.
• 2009 Rookie of the Year Jiyai Shin will be the spotlight featured player during Thursday’s opening round of coverage.
• 2008 U.S. Women’s Amateur champion Amanda Blumenherst will be featured during Friday’s telecast.
• Golf Channel will conduct on-course interviews with players as they make the turn during the four rounds of play.

The Cap Cana Championship

Dates: March 26-28

Venue: Jack Nicklaus Signature Course, Punta Espada Golf Course, Cap Cana, Dominican Republic

Airtimes (Eastern):

Friday              12:30 – 2:30 p.m. (Live)

Saturday          1 – 4 p.m. (Live)

Sunday            1 – 4 p.m. (Live)

Golf Channel Live Tournament Broadcast Team:

Brian Hammons (Play by Play)

Curt Byrum (Analyst)

John Mahaffey (Tower)

Dave Marr (Tower)

Billy Ray Brown (On Course)

Broadcast Notes:

• Scheduled to compete at The Cap Cana Championship: Fred Couples, Bernhard Langer, Mark O’Meara, Nick Price, Corey Pavin, Loren Roberts, Jay Haas, Tom Kite, Tommy Armour III, Craig Stadler, Hal Sutton, John Cook and Peter Jacobsen

Open de Andalucia de Golf

Dates: March 25-28

Venue: Parador de Malaga Golf, Malaga, Spain

Airtimes (Eastern):

Thursday         10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (Live)

Friday              10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (Live)

Saturday          9 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (Live)

Sunday            9 a.m. – 12 p.m. (Live)

Broadcast Notes:

• ·  The Open de Andalucia de Golf will be produced and broadcast in high definition.

  ·         Scheduled to compete at the Open de Andalucia de Golf: Miguel A. Jimenez, Alvaro Quiros, Nick Dougherty, Paul McGinley and Darren Clarke.

There you go.

TNT Goes Interactive With Twitter And In Other Ways on Thursday

This Thursday, not only are the Inside The NBA crew going to call the Miami Heat-Chicago Bulls game, but TNT is going to using social networking to bring fans closer to the game. Check it out.

TNT and NBA Digital Present an Interactive NBA Viewing Experience on Thursday, March 25, LIVE from Chicago

Emmy-Award winning TNT Studio Team Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith  to Call Game Together for the First Time Since 2001; NBA TV Team to Provide Pregame, Halftime, and Postgame shows in TNT’s Studio J in Atlanta

Fans will get inside access to the Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls game through live tweeting, special player and game camera feeds, exclusive HD Pocket Cam videos and more

           

On Thursday, March 25, LIVE from Chicago, TNT and NBA Digital will team up for a special interactive edition of TNT NBA Thursday, fully integrating TNT, NBA TV and NBA.com. The coverage, which tips off at 8 pm ET, will be highlighted by TNT’s Emmy-Award winning studio team of Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith announcing the Miami Heat at Chicago Bulls game courtside from the United Airlines Arena. NBA TV’s Matt Winer, Kevin McHale and Chris Webber will be providing coverage from TNT’s studio J in Atlanta. Fans will get inside access through live tweeting, special player and game camera feeds, exclusive HD pocket cam videos and a live stream chat with McHale on NBA.com. The second game will feature the Dallas Mavericks versus the Portland Trail Blazers at 9:30 p.m. (ET), with Marv Albert (play-by-play) and Mike Fratello (analyst) courtside, with David Aldridge reporting.

The Heat-Bulls game will include a social media first for Turner Sports and will fully integrate TNT, NBA TV and NBA.com. The cross promotion will weave exclusive NBA.com content throughout the TNT telecast. Highlights include:

§         Twitter Integration: For the first time, a Turner Sports game announcer will use Twitter to share his thoughts throughout a telecast, with Smith providing a running courtside commentary from Chicago. On-site reporter Craig Sager will provide additional tweets from the Windy City, with Webber providing additional commentary and analysis of action on-and-off the court. Tweets will be featured on the NBA TweetMix Channel, http://www.nba.com/tweetmixx/. TweetMix provides a real-time stream of tweets from talent and official league team accounts and features “chatter” and “links” tabs that aggregate all tweets with NBA-related terms.

§         Mosaic on NBA.com: TNT Overtime Extra, an interactive application, will provide a mosaic view allowing users to watch four exclusive camera angles at one time: 

-          Announcer Cam – A camera will be focused on the Inside crew throughout the game and, for the first time, fans will get live commentary from EJ, Kenny and Charles during select commercial breaks.

-          Player Cams (2) – Fans will vote each quarter for one player each from the Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat. An isolated camera will focus on the players.

-          Robo Cam – This camera, which is mounted above the backboard, will give unique perspectives of the action on the court.  

§         Exclusive HD Pocket Cam Videos: On Thursday, Johnson will take fans behind the scenes of TNT’s production meeting as he uses an HD pocket video camera to provide a peek into the inner workings of an Emmy award winning broadcast.

§         Live Stream Chat with Kevin McHale on NBA.com: The Hall of Famer will take questions from fans via Facebook and Twitter following halftime of the Mavericks – Trail Blazers game. 

§         Studio Swap: This marks the first time since 2001 that the EmmyÒ-award winning TNT studio team has called a game together. It’s also their first regular-season road trip since visiting New Orleans in 2006 in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The NBA TV gang in Atlanta will provide pregame, halftime and postgame shows. Johnson will handle play-by-play duties, with Smith and Barkley serving as analysts. Barkley will also interview both coaches during the game.

“This is a great opportunity to combine the production resources and talent of TNT and NBA Digital to create an entertaining, innovative and immersive experience for viewers watching at home and following online,” said Jeff Behnke, senior vice president and executive producer for Turner Sports.

That’s it for this post.

Universal Sports To Air Coverage of 2010 World Figure Skating Championships

The World Figure Skating Championships get underway Wednesday in Turin, the site of the 2006 Winter Olympics. As NBC has the rights to the event, it can also show spillover coverage on Universal Sports and that’s exactly what it will do starting on Wednesday.

Universal Sports PRESENTS THE World Figure Skating Championships

NEWS, NOTES AND QUOTES FOR MARCH 23, 2010

Men’s Short Program Live at 11 A.M. ET on Wednesday

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., March 23, 2010: Universal Sports’ live coverage of the World Figure Skating Championships from Torino, Italy, began today, March 23, with coverage of the Pairs Short Program, and will continue for the next four days. Olympian Johnny Weir will offer his perspectives from the Universal Sports live studio, joining a team consisting of play-by-play announcer Andrea Joyce, plus analysts Peter Carruthers, Michael Weiss, Tara Lipinski and the ice dancing duo of Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto. Former NBC Olympic researcher Lee Ann Gschwind will handle interviews and in-rink updates.

Below are highlights from today’s coverage.

TODAY ON UNIVERSAL SPORTS: PAIRS SHORT PROGRAM (4 – 5:30 P.M. ET):

NEWS UPDATE:

2010 Vancouver Olympic champions Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada scored 44.13 points during the compulsory dance and lead on the first day of Figure Skating Worlds. Olympic silver medalists Meryl Davis and Charlie White of the United States are in second place with 43.25 points, while Italian pair Federica Faiella and Massimo Scali of Italy are in third with 40.85 points. This could be the last compulsory segment in international ice dance competitions, as the International Skating Union will vote in June whether to eliminate the event, leaving just the original dance and free dance.

QUOTES FROM OUR COVERAGE:

On competing less than a month after the Olympic Winter Games:

Andrea Joyce, NBC Figure Skating Reporter: “I would imagine it would be a problem with a lot of the skaters at the World Championships, coming off the high of the Olympics and then, less than a month later, competing at the Worlds.”

Peter Carruthers, 1984 Olympic Pairs Figure Skating Silver Medalist: “You can look at it two ways: For those that nailed it at the Olympics and had their ‘moment,’ that’s great, but then they have to come here and get themselves back to that level. But, it can be redemption for those that had mistakes in their program at the Olympic Games.“

Joyce: “This is a tough field – the only team missing are the gold medalists from Vancouver are Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo.  You have both Russian teams skating much better than they did at the Olympic Games, as well as the American teams. The first World Championships after the Olympics are always so interesting, to see what people come with – either bringing it all, or if they are exhausted.”

 

Carruthers (on Chinese pair Dan Zhang and Hao Zhang): “Very solid, very athletic. Nothing has really come together for them at the most important times. When they skate their best, they are phenomenal to watch, because of the explosive power they have and the way they can sync up to the music.   They are looking for redemption for their Olympic performance (where they ended up fifth).”

Joyce (on the lack of a Russian Figure Skating Pair on the podium in Vancouver): “After the demise of the Soviet Union, all that state-funded sponsorship and development went away. Not just for figure skating, but all winter sports.”

Carruthers (on Chinese pair Qing Pang and Jian Tong, currently in first place): “The longer you are together as a pairs team, every single detail is recognized, and you can work and dissect every part.  When you haven’t had that mileage or the time, [the details] are not going to be in place. These two know each other really well, and they know their dynamic movement across the ice and it’s what makes them so solid.”

On the Compulsory Dance earlier today:

Carruthers:  “One of the challenging aspects of the compulsory dance is to maintain a consistent flow across the ice and not slow down, while performing complicated changes of position and addressing the waltz itself, with good posture and carriage.”

Carruthers (on Canadian Ice Dance Pair Virtue and Moir): “They’ve kept the momentum from Vancouver, through to this golden waltz. Impressive speed, with very deep patterns – going in and out from the boards.  It’s hard to cover so much ice like they do. To be able to convey the true feeling of the waltz – brilliant!”

Tessa Virtue, to Universal Sports’ Lee Ann Gschwind (on taking the ice for the first time after winning the Ice Dancing Gold Medal at the Vancouver Olympics):  “We certainly had some confidence with the Olympic title under our belts, but we quickly forgot about that as soon as we returned to Michigan and got into our normal training routine.  It’s a new dance for us, and it felt good.”

Scott Moir (on why it was important to skate at the World Championships):  “It’s a huge event. It caps off the year. We’ve never been World Champions, and that’s a goal of ours’. It was always in the plan since Day 1, there was no question after the Olympics that we were be here.”

Joyce (on American Ice Dancers Merle Davis and Charlie White): “[The compulsory dance] is the part of the competition that Davis and White have really focused on, and made improvements. At the 2009 World Championships, it was the deficit in the compulsory dance that really cost them a spot on the podium. They came so close to the bronze medal, but it was the compulsory score that kept them off.”

Charlie White, to Universal Sports’ Lee Ann Gschwind (on whether a World Champion title was a motivator in Torino):  “Absolutely. We were just off the podium last year, we have an Olympic medal but not a World medal and it’s something we want to add to our repertoire.”

TOMORROW’S COVERAGE: MEN’S SHORT PROGRAM (11 A.M. – 12:30 P.M. ET), PAIRS FREE PROGRAM (3:30 – 5 P.M. ET):

World Championships Coverage on Universal Sports TV (All times are EDT):

Tuesday, March 23 – Pairs Short Program (re-air at 9 p.m.)

Wednesday, March 24 – Men’s Short Program (live at 11 a.m. and re-air at 8 p.m.) / Pairs Free Program (live at 3:30 p.m. and re-air at 11 p.m.)

Thursday, March 25 – Original Dance (live at 10 a.m. and re-air at 8 p.m.) / Men’s Free Program  (live at 4 p.m. and re-air at 11 p.m.)

Friday, March 26 – Ladies’ Short Program  (live at 11 a.m. and re-air at 8 p.m.) / Free Dance Program  (live at 4 p.m. and re-air at 11 p.m.)

Saturday, March 27 – Ladies’ Free Program (live at 10 a.m., re-airs at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m.)

Visit UniversalSports.com/tvschedule for additional times and re-airs.

I’ll post other press releases as we go along tonight.

Some Additional Tuesday Linkage

I’m finding some good linkage for you this evening so I’ll give them to you now before Lost comes on.

First, Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch explores why ESPN and Golf Channel were so willing to accept Tiger Woods’ interview restrictions and why CBS did not.

Dennis Dodd of CBSSports.com has the Pac-10 Conference looking into creating a football championship to maximize TV rights fees.

David Tanklefsky of Broadcasting & Cable says MSG and Coca-Cola are celebrating a 100 year partnership.

Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call says a local TV and radio reporter is heading to New York to cover the Yankees for ESPN Radio.

Dan Steinberg at the Washington Post’s Sporting Bog has the video of Maryland coach Gary Williams getting choked up at the thought of losing Greivis Vasquez to graduation.

MASN announces it will launch in the Harrisburg, PA area on Comcast systems on March 31. 

The Atlanta Business Journal picks up a Sports Business Journal story from John Lombardo about TNT’s NBA studio team going on the road to call its first game on-site since 2006. 

Adam Mertz of the Capital (WI) Times looks at the perpetually angry Doug Gottlieb’s verbal beatdown of Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan.

The Sports Media Watch says ratings for the primetime sessions of the NCAA Tournament were down last week.

The Tennis-X blog has the TV schedule for the Miami Sony Ericsson Tournament.

That’s it for now

First Work Week Links

I was out of the office yesterday which prevented me from doing linkage. And I had to catch up on paperwork today so I’m giving you linkage for the first time during this work week. You’re owed big time so let’s get right to them.

Writing for the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Eric Deggans of the St. Petersburg Times says the Tiger Woods interviews on ESPN and Golf Channel were ways for Team Tiger to show it can still control the media.

The Nielsen ratings Wire blog notes that web talk regarding Tiger Woods is leaning back towards golf instead of his sexual conquests.

Ben Grossman at Broadcasting & Cable reports that MLB Network is pursuing Fox Sports host Chris Rose. I still see Rose as a co-host of Best Damned Sports Show Period and not a serious studio host.

Alex Weprin of B&C looks at the networks and sports leagues trying to follow the success of baseball and college basketball in streaming live games.

Mike Reynolds at Multichannel News explores the increasing amount of high school sports available on local and even national cable TV.

Toni Fitzgerald at Media Life Magazine says while ratings for the NCAA Tournament on CBS are down slightly from last year, online views on March Madness on Demand are way up.

Toni writes that ambush marketers won big at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver last month.

Also from Media Life, Diego Vasquez says minor league hockey is becoming red hot for family entertainment.

Diego also looks at a guerrilla marketing campaign conducted by DirecTV for its NFL Sunday Ticket pay per view package.

Mike Shields at Mediaweek says 6 million people checked out March Madness on Demand for the first four days of the NCAA Tournament.

BusinessWeek picks up an Associated Press story from Tali Arbel which states that March Madness can actually improve office morale and is seen as a positive by company bosses. 

Anthony Crupi of Mediaweek writes about ESPN launching a major research viewing initiative regarding this year’s World Cup.

Karlene Lukovitz of Mediapost says Jim Beam will be sponsoring a new ESPN web series starring Scoop Jackson that launches next month.

Jean DePlacido of the Salem (MA) News talks with Comcast SportsNet New England anchor Chris Collins who’s happy to come over from sister network New England Cable News.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times looks at the contrasting styles of Tiger interviewers Kelly Tilghman and Tom Rinaldi.

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News spreads hate for an expanded NCAA Tournament by claiming lower ratings for smaller colleges.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union has the ESPN family of networks’ schedule for the NCAA Men’s Hockey Tournament.

Pete also has the Thursday NCAA Tournament schedule on the local CBS affiliate’s main and secondary channels.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette also has Friday schedule for the same CBS affiliate.

Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call writes that Lehigh got some nice exposure during its game with Kansas last week.

Laura Nachman wonders who will replace Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia anchor Leslie Gudel.

From the Washington Post, Leonard Shapiro feels Kelly Tilghman should not have been assigned to interview Tiger Woods.

To the Dallas Morning News, Barry Horn has the NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen TV schedule for the Metroplex.

Barry also has the local ratings for the NCAA Tournament.

Barry says the Manny Pacquaio-Joshua Clottey fight was a pay per view hit.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle says Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg will be in Houston this weekend.

John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer says the entire Reds schedule on Fox Sports Ohio will be seen in crystal clear, 21st Century HDTV. 

Alan Babbit of the Holland (MI) Sentinel speaks with native Jim Kaat who’s been nominated for a Sports Emmy for his work on the MLB Network.

To the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel where Bob Wolfley says perpetually angry ESPN analyst Doug Gottlieb was critical of Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan.

Kelly Beaton of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls (IA) Courier says Northern Iowa got a lot of national attention on Monday for their upset of Kansas over the weekend.

Vlae Kershner of the San Francisco Chronicle says MLB Network didn’t give much love to the Oakland A’s last night.

Lori Gilbert of the Stockton (CA) Record profiles a Comcast SportsNet Bay Area/California reporter who’s happy to be working close to home.

Paige Dickerson of the Peninsula (WA) Daily News looks at one of the contestants to host a reality show on Comcast SportsNet Northwest.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star notes that college basketball just doesn’t play in Canada. 

William Houston of Truth & Rumours says a new cable TV regulatory decision on distribution fees leaves CBC out in the cold.

Milton Kent of Fanhouse says CBS’ NCAA Tournament studio analysts Greg Anthony and Sports Illustrated’s Seth Davis could not be more enthused about the start to March Madness.

Sports Media Watch says the ratings for the NCAA Tournament are down from last year, but CBS still won each of the four nights the games were on.

SMW says ratings were flat for the PGA Tour’s Transitions Championship on NBC.

And SMW says Sunday’s New York Rangers-Boston Bruins game drew a season low for the NHL on NBC.

Sox & Dawgs has the video of the new ESPN Sunday Night Baseball promo featuring Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz and Yankees outfielder Nick Swisher.

Joe Favorito explores the cost of growing a college sports brand.

We’ll end it there. We came back with the links with a vengeance today.

Westwood One’s Announcing Teams for the 2010 NCAA Sweet 16 and Regional Finals

Thanks to Westwood One Radio’s Twitter account, we have the announcers for this week’s Sweet Sixteen and Regional Finals as well as the Division II Championship on Saturday. In addition, Westwood One has sent announcing crews close to their home bases. I’ll explain after you see the assignments.

Regionals – Thursday, March 25th and Saturday, March 27th, 2010
Syracuse, NY, Carrier Dome, Ian Eagle and P.J. Carlesimo
Salt Lake City, UT, Energy Solutions Arena, Ted Robinson and Bill Frieder

Regionals – Friday, March 26th and Sunday, March 28th, 2010
St. Louis, MO, Edward Jones Dome, Kevin Harlan and John Thompson
Houston, TX, Reliant Stadium, Kevin Kugler and Pete Gillen

Division II Championship-Saturday, March 27th, 2010
Springfield, MA, Mass Mutual Center, Dave Ryan and Dave Odom

Notice that the play-by-play announcers are relatively close to home. Ian Eagle is in the New York Metropolitan and heads to Syracuse. Ted Robinson lives in the Bay Area and goes to Salt Lake. Kevin Harlan lives in Kansas City and gets to stay in state for the Midwest Regional Final and Kevin Kugler is based out of Omaha. Now why John Thompson goes to St. Louis and not Syracuse is beyond me. That I don’t understand. There you have the Westwood One assignments.

Number That Only Makes Sense To Me

234.6 at 7:55.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Primetime & Late Night Viewing Picks

College Basketball
men’s

NIT Quarterfinals
Texas Tech at Mississippi – ESPN, 7 p.m.
North Carolina at UAB – ESPN, 9 p.m.

women’s

NCAA Tournament – All games on ESPN2
2nd round
Temple vs. UConn – 7:06 p.m.
Vanderbilt vs. Xavier – 7:06 p.m.
Mississippi State vs. Ohio State – 7:11 p.m.
Vermont vs. Notre Dame – 7:16 p.m.

UCLA vs. Nebraska – 9:35 p.m.
Wisconsin-Green Bay vs. Iowa State – 9:40 p.m.
San Diego State vs. West Virginia – 9:40 p.m.
Arkansas-Little Rock vs. Oklahoma – 9:45 p.m.

English Premier League
West Ham United vs. Wolverhampton – Fox Soccer Plus, 4 p.m.

Golf
Tavistock Cup – Golf Channel, noon

MLB
Tampa Bay vs. Philadelphia – The Comcast Network, 1 p.m.
Atlanta vs. New York Mets – SNY, 1 p.m.
Chicago Cubs at Kansas City – MLB Network/Fox Sports Kansas City, 4 p.m.
Red Sox vs. Minnesota – MLB Network/Fox Sports North, 7 p.m./NESN, 10:30 p.m. (same night coverage)

NBA
Denver at New York – NBA TV, 7:30 p.m.

NHL
Boston at Atlanta – NESN/SportSouth, 7 p.m.
Columbus at New Jersey – Fox Sports Ohio/MSG Plus, 7 p.m.
Florida at Toronto – Fox Sports Florida/Rogers Sportsnet Ontario, 7 p.m.
Carolina at Tampa Bay – Altitude/Sun Sports, 7:30 p.m.
Philadelphia at Ottawa – Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia/RDS/Rogers Sportsnet East, 7:30 p.m.
San Jose at Minnesota – Versus/TSN2, 8 p.m.
Dallas at Nashville – KDFI/Fox Sports Tennessee, 8 p.m.
Phoenix at Chicago – Fox Sports Arizona/Comcast SportsNet Chicago, 8:30 p.m.
Anaheim at Calgary – Fox Sports West/Rogers Sportsnet West, 9 p.m.
Vancouver at Edmonton – Rogers Sportsnet Pacific, 9 p.m.

NHL On The Fly – NHL Network, 8 p.m.

Entertainment
Romancing The Stone – Fox Movie Channel, 8 p.m.
Lost – ABC, 9 p.m.
Survivors – BBC America, 9 p.m.
Southland – TNT, 10 p.m.
Late Show with David Letterman – CBS, 11:35 p.m.

Promo for 24, Season 8, Hour 14

This looks quite awesome. The episodes are ramping up. Now we know Dana’s a baddie and is a turncoat, it’s time for Jack Bauer to shoot her dead.

Don’t forget, 24 airs Monday night at 9 East/West, 8 Central and Mountain on Fox.

Fang’s Bites Grade for 24, Season 8, Hour 13, 4 a.m. – 5 a.m.

Opening Sequence: CTU is damaged by the EMP driven in by Kayla – A.

Arlo tells Hastings that the drones flying over New York will eventually crash – A.

Hastings tells Dana Walsh he will drive Kayla to the United Nations so she can reunited with the Hassans – B.

He also tells Dingbat Dana that she’ll assemble the division heads and get assessment reports – A.

Jack calls Bill Holden at NSA about the IRK Splinter Cell and wants to get surveillance on the van – A.

Bill tells all satellites have been diverted to CTU, but CTU is down – B.

Bill is instructed to look for them through traffic cams – A.

Cole realizes that with NSA shutting down the bridge and tunnel traffic, the only way to get in is through the Cross East River – A.

Samir meets with his men and find CTU is down – A.

Samir explains to Tarin that using Kayla was the only way to get the nuclear rods into the city – A.

Hastings tells Kayla to ID the terrorists working with Tarin – A.

She refuses – F.

Hastings tells Kayla that Tarin is alive and staged her escape – A.

Kayla is confused – C.

Samir is getting ready to bring the rods into the city – A.

Jack’s SUV is spotted by Samir’s men – A.

Cole finds Samir’s men through infrared – A.

Jack realizes they’re about to be attacked – A.

The car is shot at – A.

FIREFIGHT!!!!!!!!! – A+++++++++

Samir’s men recognizes on CTU agent and Jack – A.

They’ll engage Jack in a firefight while Samir leaves – A.

Cole sees them leave through infrared – A.

They can’t warn NSA – C.

Jack finds a hardwired emergency phone and tells Agent Owen to go to the phone – A.

Arlo tells Hastings of the casualties at CTU – A.

Hastings discovers NSA has arrived. That was quick – A.

Frank Haynham of NSA is introduced to Hastings – A

Haynham is a jerk – F.

Dana finds that Chloe is trying to get the CTU servers up and Chloe’s snark is back – A.

Chloe is told Haynham needs help – A.

Chloe tells Hastings to look for Jack, but he refuses. Jerk – C.

Chloe tells Haynham how to get CTU’s servers up and running faster – A.

Haynham tells Chloe to get out – F.

Haynham is a jerk – F.

Chloe then calls Renee and tells her about Jack – A.

Renee tells Chloe she has to do what she has to do – A.

Renee to the rescue – A.

Renee is fucking awesome!! – A++++

Dana goes to speak with Bill Prady. He’s still there? – A.

Dana tells Prady that everything has been erased – F.

Prady leaves – F.

Chloe goes to Haynham and tells him she needs to get the servers done her way – A.

Haynham says no – F.

Chloe pulls a gun and kicks him out – A+++++

The firefight continues – A.

Samir’s men are about to surround Jack and Agent Owen – A.

Jack has them go out to the phone behind the armor – A.

One CTU agent tries to run and is hit. Idiot. He didn’t listen to Jack – F.

Owens runs out to get him – F.

Jack and Cole have to cover him – A.

Owen is hit – F.

The other agent dies – C.

Owen is about to too – C.

Kayla is brought to the Hassans – A.

Dalia is happy to see her – A.

Kayla hugs Omar – A.

She apologizes for not believing him about Tarin – A.

Dalia tells Omar to be strong – A.

Haynham brings Hastings down to get to get into the server room – A.

Choe is hotwiring the system when she hears the drilling – C.

They get in – F.

Hastings decides to listen to Chloe – A.

Dana disagrees – A.

Chloe tells Hastings she needs 10 minutes – A.

Hastings gives her ten minutes. Way to go Hastings – A++++++

Haynham is a jerk – F.

Bill Prady is back and wants to speak with Hastings stunning Dana. What? – F.

Chloe works to get CTU’s servers back up – A.

Chloe turns the servers on and they start booting up, but one circuit fries, but the computers and satellite uplink is up – A.

Hastings puts Haynham in his place. Hastings is growing a backbone – A.

Owen is dead – D.

Jack tells Cole that he’ll draw fire for Cole to make the phone call – A.

Jack tells Hastings to ensure that Renee won’t be brought back in. Too late – B.

Jack takes out two men – A.

Jack is hit – B.

RENEE SHOOTS ONE MAN DEAD!!!! – A++++

Cole makes the call to CTU – A.

Renee runs to Jack and helps him out – A.

Chloe’s computer is back up and Arlo sends a NYPD helicopter to look along the NY shoreline for the rods – A.

Hastings tells Chloe good work – A.

Chloe cuts him off saying she’s not good with praise. HA! – A.

NYPD helicopter leaves with Cole – A.

Dana looks for holding and Bill Prady – F.

She finds him – F.

Prady is on to Dana – F.

Prady pressures Dana to come clean – F.

Dana kicks and then strangles Prady?????????????? In CTU???? WTF???? Holy frijoles!!! – B?

Dana hides Prady’s body? – A.

Dana then calls Samir. She’s the mole? – A.

She goes back out into CTU. Wow. Nina redeux. – A

Samir, Tarin and the men drive off from a storage area where the rods are – A.

Overall grade – B, 86. Good episode. Now with the Dana Walsh storyline taking a turn, let’s hope the episodes reach A grades.

Primetime & Late Night Viewing Picks

College Basketball
men’s

NIT
Nevada at URI – ESPNU, 6 p.m.
UConn at Virginia Tech – ESPN, 7 p.m.
Kent State at Illinois – ESPNU, 8 p.m.
Dayton at Cincinnati – ESPN, 9 p.m.

women’s
NCAA Tournament – All games on ESPN2
ESPN2 coverage map
7 p.m.
Dayton vs. Tennessee
St. John’s vs. Florida State
Michigan State vs. Kentucky
LSU vs. Duke

9:30 p.m.
Iowa vs. Stanford
Gonzaga vs. Texas A&M
Georgia vs. Oklahoma State

Georgetown vs. Baylor – ESPNU

MLB
Anaheim Angels vs. Los Angeles Dodgers – Fox Sports Prime Ticket, 4 p.m.
Cleveland vs. Chicago Cubs – Comcast SportsNet Chicago, 4 p.m./MLB Network, 9 p.m. (same day coverage)
Colorado vs. Cincinnati – MLB Network/Fox Sports Ohio, 4 p.m.

NBA
Dallas at New Orleans – NBA TV, 8 p.m.
Boston at Utah – Comcast SportsNet New England, 9 p.m.

NHL
Pittsburgh at Detroit – Versus/TSN2, 7 p.m.
Ottawa at Montreal – RDS/Rogers Sportsnet East, 7:30 p.m.
Colorado at Los Angeles – Altitude/Fox Sports West, 10:30 p.m.

NHL On The Fly – NHL Network, 8 p.m.

Entertainment
How I Met Your Mother – CBS, 8 p.m.
Top Gear – BBC America, 8 p.m.
24 – Fox, 9 p.m.
Damages – FX, 10 p.m.
Nurse Jackie (season premiere) – Showtime, 10 p.m.
United States of Tara (season premiere) – Showtime, 10:30 p.m.
Late Show with David Letterman – CBS, 11:35 p.m.

Number That Only Makes Sense To Me

236.6 at 7:55.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Some Thoughts On CBS’ First Weekend of the 2010 NCAA Tournament

If this is CBS’ last NCAA Tournament, I certainly hope that the next TV partner can match or surpass what the network has done. For the most part, CBS was on top of the action. There were late switches and there were some inexplicable switches. The craziest switch was during Sunday evening’s action as Xavier and Pittsburgh were coming down to the last tenths of a second with the Musketeers up by 3 ponits, as a ball went out of bounds in Pitt’s favor with :00.4 seconds left, CBS suddenly switched the Providence market to Texas A&M-Purdue. Granted, that game was going to the last shot, but had the tying shot for the Panthers went in, there would have been a revolt. As it was, the shot for the Panthers was short, but still, stay with the game when you have that little time left.

But when I have Mega March Madness on DirecTV and can also access March Madness on Demand either through my iPhone or my laptop, I can make my own switches and keep track of other games in progress through CBS’ scoreboard on top of the screen.

I did hear of late switches through Twitter, but when the complaints were posted, CBS then made the change to the game in question.

As far as the game productions, replays came up when called for. Most of the replays were from the proper angles to give perspective. As always, the production level is very high. Just the game, crowd cutaways to a minimum, let the game speak for itself and give us plenty of band shots.

The studio with Greg Gumbel, Greg Anthony and even Seth Davis is a well-oiled machine. In his second year as studio analyst, Anthony looks comfortable and gave strong opinions. Davis did a good job in explaining a controversial lane violation call against New Mexico. Greg Gumbel as traffic cop is one of the best hosts on TV, bar none.

Now to the announcing teams and we grade them from top to bottom.

Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery, Providence – A+. Uncle Verne and Raft had one of the most exciting subregionals in the tournament. With three upsets, Providence gave the NCAA Tournament one of the biggest upsets with Ohio defeating Georgetown and also brought us our new darlings, St. Mary’s. With Raft’s raining down “ONIONS!” and Verne providing the proper prospective, this was easily the most entertaining announcing team of the tournament.

Gus Johnson/Len Elmore, Buffalo – A minus. Through no fault of their own, Buffalo was a chalk bracket. All of the higher seeds advanced and there were too many blowouts that prevented Gus from giving us his patented breathless calls. However, that didn’t stop Gus from being excited at the right moments and Len Elmore is as usual, his very good understated self. Had Gus and Len been in Providence or Oklahoma City, the calls would have been there. Oh well. Gus may have a chance for some good calls in St. Louis on Thursday.

Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg, Jacksonville – A minus. Nantz/Kellogg will follow Duke throughout the tournament and while the Blue Devils were boring in their games, Jim and Clark did get Cornell which introduced itself to the nation this weekend. Jim allows the games to breathe. Clark is Clark and very comfortable in the lead analyst role. In two years, Clark has made me forget how abrasive Billy Packer has been courtside. Kellogg is very good and he and Nantz have formed a very solid team.

Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel, Milwaukee – A minus. Ian is another announcer who can rise to the occasion and is very entertaining. Did very well during the Xavier-Pittsburgh game on Sunday. He and Jim work well off each other.

Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner, Oklahoma City – B. Kevin got to call the huge Northern Iowa upset over Kansas on Sunday, plus had the opportunity to call UNI’s win over UNLV Friday thanks to a late shot by Ali Farokhmanesh. Kevin is sometimes in love with his own voice and there are times when he inexplicably doesn’t get excited. Some fans on Twitter thought he was pro-Kansas during the UNI game, but I didn’t see that. Dan Bonner who does ACC games on Raycom shows that he can provide very good analysis as well.

Dick Enberg/Jay Bilas, New Orleans – B. There was the Old Dominion upset over Notre Dame that helped to kickstart the tournament on Thursday, but other than that, there wasn’t much excitement from the venue. Maybe it was the many empty seats that were clearly visible, but this subregional seemed to be quite dull. And Dick and Jay did their best to keep things flowing, but the games didn’t match this usually high quality announcing team.

Tim Brando/Mike Gminski, Spokane – B minus. Tim and Mike had two excellent second round games in Michigan State-Maryland which had four lead lead changes in the last minute and the Texas A&M-Purdue game which went into overtime. Tim did rise to the occasion and had some great lines like “The bank is open late in Spokane,” when a shot went in off the glass. Mike Gminski is a very good analyst and both Timmy B and G-Man have worked together on ACC games for Fox Sports Net and Raycom. While their chemistry is unmatched, Brando does tend to rely on the cliches too often. The hackneyed cliches are why this team hasn’t been given a higher grade.

Spero Dedes/Bob Wenzel, San Jose – C plus. On Thursday, Spero got to call a buzzer beater in his first NCAA Tournament game for CBS when Murray State upset Vanderbilt. Dedes represents the younger generation and shows promise to remain with CBS provided that it keeps the tournament beyond this year. I’ve not been a fan of Bob Wenzel’s over the years and that is the main reason as to why I can’t go higher than a C plus for this team.

And as for CBS’ coverage, I give the network an A minus for its coverage. Switches could have been handled better.

So that concludes this blogger’s thoughts on CBS

CBS Sets the Tip Times and Announcing Assignments for 2010 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16

We have your tip times and the announcing assignments for this year’s NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. Let’s take a look where the top four announcing teams for CBS will be headed. Without looking, I’ll guess Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg will be calling the South region where Duke is playing.

CBS SPORTS’ EXCLUSIVE LIVE COVERAGE OF 2010 NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP CONTINUES ON THURSDAY, MARCH 25

Tip Times and Broadcast Pairings Announced for Regional Semi-finals

CBS Sports’ exclusive live coverage of the 2010 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship continues with the regional semi-finals on Thursday, March 25 and Friday, March 26 (7:00 PM-12:00 AM, ET, both days) and concludes on Monday, April 5 with the National Championship game (9:00 PM, ET).

Following are the tip times for Thursday and Friday’s regional semi-final games, as well as the CBS Sports announce team assignments, led by Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg.

THURSDAY, MARCH 25 (7:00 PM-12:00 AM, ET)

7:07 PM – Salt Lake City I, Syracuse vs. Butler, Gus Johnson/Len Elmore

7:27 PM – Syracuse I, Washington vs. West Virginia, Dick Enberg/Jay Bilas 

approximately 9:37 PM – Salt Lake II, Kansas State vs. Xavier, Gus Johnson/Len Elmore

approximately 9:57 PM – Syracuse II, Kentucky vs. Cornell, Dick Enberg/Jay Bilas

FRIDAY, MARCH 26 (7:00 PM-12:00 AM, ET)

7:07 PM – St. Louis I, Ohio State vs. Tennessee, Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery

7:27 PM – Houston I. Baylor vs. St. Mary’s, Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg 

approximately 9:37 PM – St. Louis II, Michigan State vs. N. Iowa, Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery 

approximately 9:57 PM – Houston II, Duke vs. Purdue, Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg

Greg Gumbel, Greg Anthony and Seth Davis host THE ROAD TO THE FINAL FOUR® from the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City. 

Bob Dekas is coordinating producer of CBS Sports’ NCAA basketball coverage, and Bob Fishman is the lead director.  Eric Mann is Senior Producer and Bob Matina directs. 

Harold Bryant is Vice President, Production, CBS Sports.

What did I tell you? Nantz and Kellogg heading to the South region in Houston where Duke is playing.

Transcript of Golf Channel’s Interview with Tiger Woods

Golf Channel was the first to air its interview with Tiger Woods right at 7:30 this evening. ESPN followed at 7:45 p.m. This is the transcript of the interview conducted by Golf Channel’s Kelly Tilghman.

Interview Transcript with Tiger Woods and Golf Channel’s Kelly Tilghman

ORLANDO, Fla., (March 21) –The first televised interview with Tiger Woods since November aired on Golf Channel tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET, during a special, 30-minute edition of Golf Central, and will be replayed by the network throughout the night and in its entirety on www.GolfChannel.com.  Kelly Tilghman sat down with Woods today at the world number-one golfer’s home course, Isleworth Country Club in Windermere, Fla., just outside Orlando.

Kelly Tilghman: Tiger, you’ve been a master of control your entire life, how did things get so out of control?

Tiger Woods: Going against your core values, losing sight of it. I quit meditating, I quit being a Buddhist, and my life changed upside down. I felt entitled, which I had never felt before. Consequently, I hurt so many people by my own reckless attitude and behavior.

KT: Were there moments you thought you should stop, but didn’t?

TW: Yeah, I tried to stop and I couldn’t stop. It was just, it was horrific.

KT: For a man who’s so disciplined physically and psychologically, why couldn’t you say no?

TW: I don’t know, now I know. It’s part of what I learned in treatment, being there for 45 days you learn a lot. You strip away the denial, the rationalization and you come to the truth and the truth is very painful at times and to stare at yourself and look at the person you’ve become…you become disgusted.

KT: The Masters is a demanding stage on its own, let alone for a return of this magnitude, how do you know you’re mentally prepared for this?

TW: I’m excited to get back and play. I miss the game. I miss playing, I miss competing. I wasn’t ready to play in Tavistock or play in Bay Hill, I expressed that to Joe as well as Arnold. I want to play in these events but I just wasn’t ready. I started too late with my preparation. Hank and I are starting to work now and start to get it going.

KT: How do you know you’ll be ready for the Masters?

TW: I’m starting to get my feel back. I know how to play the golf course and that helps a lot, I just got to, play it.

KT: How will your therapy affect your 2010 schedule? I’m assuming you’ll have more in-patient therapy ahead.

TW: Yeah, I will have more treatment, more therapy sessions. As far as my schedule going forward, I don’t know what I’m going to do Kelly. Last year I didn’t know because of my knee it was still uncertain, and this year, with all the things that I’ve done I don’t know what I’ll be doing either. That to me is a little bit bothersome too in a sense that I don’t like not knowing what to do.  But what I know I have to do is become a better person and that begins with going to more treatment.

KT: You went from becoming recognized as the greatest golfer in the world to becoming a punch line. How did that make you feel?

TW: It was hurtful, but then again you know what, I did it. I’m the one who did those things and looking back on it now with a more clear head, I get it. I can understand why people will say these things because you know what, it was disgusting behavior. As a person, it’s hard to believe that was me looking back on it now.

KT: America was concerned when the world’s greatest golfer was lying on the ground with no shoes at 2:30 in the morning, bleeding, what happened that night?

TW: It’s all in the police report, they investigated it and they have it on public record, there’s a lot of stuff between Elin and I that will remain private and that’s about it.

KT: How did you crash the car?

TW: I wasn’t going very fast, but unfortunately, I hit a few things.

KT: It’s been reported that members of your team, your inner circle were involved in your misdoings, is it true?

TW: That is not true, it was all me. I’m the one who did it, I’m the one who acted the way I acted, no one knew what was going on. I’m sure if more people would have known in my inner circle they would’ve, they would’ve stopped it…or tried to put a stop to it but I kept it all to myself.

KT: What is the state of your marriage with Elin right now?

TW: We’re working on it and it’s a process that will remain private between her and I.

KT: If your father were here today and looked back on these last 4 months, what would he say to you?

TW: He’d be very disappointed in me. We’d have numerous long talks. That’s one of the things I miss, I miss his guidance, wish I could have had his guidance through all this to have him help straighten me up, I know he would’ve done it.

KT: What do you think he would say?

TW: Can’t say it on air but he would’ve been very direct. Basically said, you need to get your life headed in the right direction again.

KT: For the 12 year olds and the parents out there who looked at you as a role model, what do you have to say to them to make them believe in you again?

TW: It’s going to be over time. It’s going to be my actions over time. I’m trying to become a better person each and every day. The proof in the pudding is over time and that’s what I’m trying to do. I will continue to do that.

KT: How will you explain this to your children, one day when they’re old enough to understand?

TW: I will have that sit down talk and it won’t be just one time, I know that. It will be numerous times and I take full ownership of it, I did it. No one else did, it was just me and that’s a responsibility that I will have. I will talk to my kids , for however long they want to talk about it. That is a conversation that will need to be had.

KT: Based on all that has transpired, what do you want your legacy to be when all is said and done?

TW: Just like I wanted before. I felt that golf was a vehicle for me to help a lot of people. My dad had always said something that I never really quite understood until these times. In order to help other people, you first have to learn how to help yourself. Going into a treatment center for 45 days I learned a lot. I learned how to help myself and that’s the way I can help others down the road.

KT: I noticed you’re wearing a bracelet, can we see it?

TW: Yeah.

KT: What does it mean?

TW: It’s Buddhist, it’s for protection and strength and I certainly need that.

KT: When did you start wearing it?

TW: Before I went into treatment.

KT: Will you be wearing it during the Masters?

TW: Absolutely.

KT: For the rest of your life?

TW: Absolutely.

KT: Tiger thank you.

TW: Thanks Kel.

That’s it. When ESPN’s transcript becomes available, I’ll post it.

Golf Channel Speaks With Tiger Woods

Not to be outdone by ESPN, Golf Channel’s Kelly Tilghman also procured an interview with Tiger Woods which will also air at 7:30 p.m.

GOLF CHANNEL TALKS TO TIGER WOODS 1-ON-1; FIRST PUBLIC INTERVIEW SINCE THANKSGIVING- NIGHT CAR CRASH

 

ORLANDO, Fla. (March 21, 2010, 6:30 p.m.ET) – The first televised interview with Tiger Woods since November will air tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET on a special, 30-minute edition of Golf Central on Golf Channel, and will be replayed by the network throughout the night and in its entirety on www.GolfChannel.com.  Kelly Tilghman sat down with Woods today at the world number-one golfer’s home course, Isleworth Country Club in Windermere, Fla., just outside Orlando.

During the emotional interview, Woods discussed what happened the night of his infamous car crash, and talks about how he has lost touch with his roots. “Today was a unique and special opportunity,” said Tilghman.  “I was able to ask the tough questions that have been on everyone’s mind for the past three months and Tiger’s answers were from the heart.”

Woods will return to competitive golf at the Masters, April 8-11. Golf Channel’s Live From the Masters will televise more than 34 hours of live news coverage during the week, beginning Tuesday, April 6.  The network’s team of reporters and analysts, as well as guest experts, will cover all the major storylines, break down tournament play and feature daily interviews with key players.

Golf Central Special – 1-on-1 with Tiger Woods

7:30 p.m. ET (replays throughout evening)

If I get excerpts, I’ll post it here.

ESPN Releases Excerpts of Interview with Tiger Woods

Just into the Fang’s Bites inbox is this press release regarding Tiger Woods’ interview with Tom Rinaldi.

ONE-ON-ONE INTERVIEW WITH TIGER WOODS TODAY AT 7:30 P.M. ET ON ESPN

Excerpts From Interview With ESPN Reporter Tom Rinaldi Released

ESPN will present a one-on-one interview with Tiger Woods, today at approximately 7:30 p.m. ET. The interview, conducted earlier today by ESPN reporter Tom Rinaldi from Florida’s Isleworth community, will also be offered on ESPN.com, ESPN Radio and ESPNEWS at approximately 7:30 p.m.

ESPN was allotted approximately five-six minutes of interview time to ask any question of Woods, with the understanding the interview would not air until 7:30 p.m. ET.

ESPN selected the Emmy and Edward R. Murrow Award-winning Rinaldi, who is a prominent reporter on ESPN’s golf coverage and has interviewed and covered Woods extensively in the past.

ESPN’S TIGER WOODS INTERVIEW EXCERPTS INCLUDE:

On why he got married:

Woods: “Why?  ‘Cause I loved her. I loved Elin with everything I have. And that’s something that makes me feel even worse. That I did this to someone I loved that much.”

On the depth of his infidelity:

Woods: “Well, just one is enough.  Um, and obviously that wasn’t the case, and I’ve made my mistakes.  And as I’ve said, I’ve hurt so many people, and so many people I have to make an amends to, and that’s living a life of amends.”

On all that has happened over the past year:

Woods: “A lot has transpired in my life.  A lot of ugly things have happened.  Things that have…..I’ve done some pretty bad things in my life.  And uh, all came to a head.  But now, after treatment, going for inpatient treatment for 45 days and more outpatient treatment, um, I’m getting back to my old roots.”

On what happened the day of the car accident:

Woods: “Well you know it’s all in the police report. Beyond that everything’s between Elin and myself and that’s private.”

On why he didn’t seek treatment before all the news broke:

Woods:  “Well I didn’t know I was that bad….stripping away denial, rationalization. You strip that away and you find the truth.”

On the low points  — the moments of having to tell his wife and mother:

Woods: “They both have been brutal.  They’ve both been very tough.  Because I hurt them the most.  Those are the two people in my life who I’m closest to and to say the things that I’ve done, truthfully to them, is…honestly was…very painful.”

On what his measure of success will be at the Masters:

Woods: “Well, playing is one thing.  I’m excited to get back and play, I’m excited to get to see the guys again.  I really miss a lot of my friends out there. I miss competing.  But still, I still have a lot more treatment to do, and just because I’m playing, doesn’t mean I’m gonna stop going to treatment.”

On the expected/hopeful reception from fans:

Woods: “I don’t know. I don’t know. I’m a little nervous about that to be honest with you…It would be nice to hear a couple claps here and there…but also hope they clap for birdies too (laughs).”

One more Tiger-centric press release coming up.

Lazy Sunday Links

Let’s do some linkage. I was doing some other things earlier today so as long as the media stories don’t refer to today’s NCAA action, we should be able to get some things done for you.

Anthony Crupi at Mediaweek says the big beneficiary of Tiger Woods’ return to the PGA Tour will be Golf Channel.

Brian Lowry of Variety writes that Tiger Woods’ resurfacing at The Masters next month will have something in store for everyone.

ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reports that the UFL is seeking capital from the NFL in return for putting games on NFL Network.

Andrew Heining in the Christian Science Monitor discusses the record number of online visitors to CBS’ March Madness on Demand.

SportsbyBrooks says despite reports to the contrary, a decision has already been made to expand the NCAA Tournament.

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News feels the NCAA is conducting a money grab if it indeed expands the Tournament from 65 to 96 teams.

Phil Mushnick in the New York Post says the NCAA should not expand the Tournament and leave well enough alone.

Laura Nachman has created a bracket of 64 Philadelphia sports announcers.

Michael Klein of the Philadelphia Inquirer says original Comcast SportsNet anchor Leslie Gudel leaves the desk this week for a new position with the channel.

Steve Hummer at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution says not even Tiger Woods’ return could mar The Masters.

Marlon Morgan at the Memphis Commercial Appeal says the ratings for the Grizzlies on Fox Sports Tennessee are up this season in a big way. 

Dave Birkett at AnnArbor.com says the University of Michigan will be ready for its first ever football primetime game in 2011.

Over to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Bob Wolfley hears from ESPN/CBS analyst Jay Bilas on Cornell’s low seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star Tribune says while the Timberwolves have been short of wins, Corey Brewer has been getting his share of the national spotlight thanks to his spectacular dunks.

Obrey Brown of the Highland (CA) Community News discusses the phone call he received from Bob Costas in regards to steroids and other issues.

Artie Gigantino of the San Francisco Examiner writes that ESPN and CBS will be the big winners for Tiger Woods 2010 debut at The Masters.

Maury Brown at the Biz of Baseball writes about a new sports social networking site launched by Anaheim Angels announcer Victor Rojas. A bit of disclosure here. I was asked by Victor to help beta test the site. I’ll be talking to Victor about the site named Yakcy and the features there.

The Sports Media Watch has its weekend ratings predictions.

I’ll end it there for now. 

BREAKNG NEWS: Tiger Woods’ 1st TV Interview To Air On ESPN Tonight

Word has been leaking out this afternoon about an on-air interview with Tiger Woods that will appear on ESPN tonight.

Sports Business Journal’s John Ourand broke the story on Twitter just before 4 p.m. today. As John tweets, the interview will be conducted by Tom Rinaldi who has regularly covered the PGA Tour for ESPN.

Rick Freeman of the Associated Press says the interview details are being kept secret for now.

We’ll continue to follow the story.

Giving You Good Saturday Links

Ok, you’re owed some linkage big time. Thursday, I got caught up with the Sports Emmy Award nominations and the NCAA Tournament. On Friday, I was out of the office and unable to do the usual features until very late at night. So after running errands this morning, it’s time to provide you with some links. I do it for you, my loyal readers.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News says an exciting first day of the NCAA Tournament led to a record number of visits to CBS/NCAA’s March Madness on Demand.

Mike says MLB Home Run Derby will become the first event to run on the Alleged Worldwide Leader’s new 3-D network.

Mike Farrell of Multichannel tells us that in its first quarter as a publicly traded company, Madison Square Garden pulled a profit thanks to higher cable affiliate fees for MSG Network. 

Tripp Mickle and Liz Mullen of the Sports Business Daily write about the new collective bargaining agreement hashed out today between Major League Soccer and its players.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says the Big East lost out on some big money when three of its teams lost on the first day of the NCAA Tournament.

Writing for the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Dave Kindred finds that a Duke University cultural anthropologist on how big an event the return of Tiger Woods will be, not to just The Masters, but to the country.

SportsbyBrooks says it appears that The Masters will not have Tiger Woods’ first tee shot at Augusta National on live TV.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times says sports retailers are hoping that Tiger Woods gets back on track.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union says despite three overtime games and some big upsets, Thursday’s ratings for the NCAA Tournament were down from a year ago.

The Buffalo News’ Alan Pergament writes that CBS could not have asked for a more compelling first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Writing in Press Box, Dave Hughes of DCRTV.com says WJZ-FM has hired a replacement for Anita Marks who left earlier this year.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner looks inside the record viewing numbers at March Madness on Demand.

Jim explores how Tony Kornheiser and cyclist Lance Armstrong made up after Mr. Tony got in trouble again.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle says CBS hopes it’s still broadcasting the NCAA Tournament in 2011 when the Final Four is played there.

Barry Horn in the Dallas Morning News has some tidbits he has picked up from watching the first two days of the NCAA Tournament.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has the latest on Vin Scully who had to be hospitalized after a fall this week.

And Tom has a clip of this Sunday’s 60 Minutes which focuses on #1 ranked doubles team Bob and Mike Bryan who grew in SoCal.

Tom’s Friday column looks at MLB Network’s 30 Clubs in 30 Days program on the Dodgers.

Bill Dwyre of the Los Angeles Times says when Vin Scully is ok, it means Southern California is ok.

We have this video from the Times’ Jim Peltz and Fox Sports West’s Jill Arrington discussing Vin’s return to calling the Dodgers this Sunday after his fall.

I had wondered what was up with Jill. Now I know.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star says CBC is convinced there’s a market for amateur sports on TV, but regulators are uncooperative.

William Houston in Truth & Rumours says an Olympics/amateur sports channel should be on the air in Canada.

The Sports Media Watch notes that the NHL on NBC fell below a 1.0 rating last week.

SMW says the ratings for the NCAA Selection Show on CBS fell last Sunday.

The Big Lead notes that CBS’ Greg Anthony wasn’t too happy over a late lane violation call that cost New Mexico State an upset bid over Michigan State.

Sox & Dawgs noticed that NESN was advertising Mets.com instead of the Red Sox.

Orbitcast says Sirius XM will air complete coverage of The Masters in April.

That will end the linkage for your Saturday.

Number That Only Makes Sense To Me

235.8 at 9:20.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Weekend Viewing Picks

Saturday, March 20

Boxing
Manny Pacquaio vs. Joshua Clottey, replay – HBO, 11 p.m.

College Basketball Viewing Picks

College Hockey

CCHA Championship
Michigan vs. Northern Michigan – Fox Sports Detroit, 7:30 p.m.

ECAC Championship
Cornell vs. Union – Fox College Sports, 7 p.m.

Hockey East Championship
Boston College vs. Maine – NESN, 7 p.m.

WCHA Final Five
Third Place GameWisconsin vs. Denver – Fox Sports North, 3 p.m.
Broadmoor Trophy
St. Cloud State vs. North Dakota – Fox Sports North, 8 p.m.

English Premier League
Aston Villa vs. Wolverhampton – ESPN2, 8:30 a.m.
Stoke City vs. Tottenham – Fox Soccer Plus, 10:55 a.m.
Everton vs. Bolton – Fox Soccer Channel, 11 a.m.
Arsenal vs. West Ham United – Fox Soccer Channel, 1:30 p.m.
Sunderland vs. Birmingham City – Fox Soccer Plus, 5 p.m. (same day coverage)
Wigan vs. Burnley – Fox Soccer Plus, 7 p.m. (same day coverage)
Portsmouth vs. Hull City – Fox Soccer Channel, 9 p.m. (same day coverage)

Golf
PGA Tour/Transitions Championship, 3rd round – NBC, 3 p.m.

MLB
Baltimore vs. Red Sox – NESN, 1 p.m.
New York Yankees vs. Houston – Fox Sports Houston, 1 p.m.
New York Mets vs. St. Louis – KSDK, 1 p.m.
Philadelphia vs. Detroit – MLB Network/WPHL, 1 p.m.
Arizona vs. Seattle – Fox Sports Arizona/Fox Sports Northwest, 4 p.m./MLB Network, 10 p.m. (same day coverage)
Cincinnati vs. San Francisco – Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, 4 p.m./MLB Network, 5 p.m. (same day coverage)
Los Angeles Dodgers (SS) vs. Texas – KTXA, 4 p.m.
San Diego (SS) vs. Chicago White Sox – WGN, 4 p.m.
San Diego (SS) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (SS) – Fox Sports Prime Ticket, 10 p.m.

NASCAR
Nationwide Series/Scotts Turf Builder 300 – ABC, 2:30 p.m.

NBA
Chicago at Philadelphia – WGN America, 7 p.m.
Boston at Dallas – Comcast SportsNet New England, 9 p.m.
New Orleans at Utah – NBA TV, 9 p.m.

NHL
Carolina at Pittsburgh – Fox Sports Carolinas/FSN Pittsburgh, 1 p.m.
Ottawa at Dallas – Rogers Sportsnet East/Fox Sports Southwest, 2 p.m.
Montreal at Toronto – CBC/RDS/NHL Network (US), 7 p.m.
Buffalo at Florida – MSG Buffalo/Fox Sports Florida, 7 p.m.
Philadelphia at Atlanta – The Comcast Network/SportSouth, 7 p.m.
St. Louis at New Jersey – Fox Sports Midwest/MSG Plus, 7 p.m.
Washington at Tampa Bay – Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic/Sun Sports, 7:30 p.m.
Columbus at Nashville – Fox Sports Ohio/Fox Sports Tennessee, 8 p.m.
Chicago at Phoenix – Comcast SportsNet Chicago/Fox Sports Arizona, 9 p.m./NHL Network, 9:30 p.m. (joined in progress)
Detroit at Vancouver – CBC/Fox Sports Detroit, 10 p.m.
New York Islanders at Los Angeles – MSG Plus/Fox Sports West, 10:30 p.m.

NHL On The Fly – NHL Network, 11:30 p.m.

Tennis
BNP Paribas Open/men’s semifinals & doubles finals – Fox Sports Net/Tennis Channel, 3 p.m.

Entertainment
Giada at Home: Aloha L.A. – Food Network, 1 p.m.
Legend of the Seeker – WGN America, 3 p.m. or check your local listings
Cops – Fox, 8 p.m.
America’s Most Wanted: America Fights Back – Fox, 9 p.m.
Survivors – BBC America, 9 p.m.
48 Hours Mystery: In Too Deep – CBS, 10 p.m.
The Wanda Sykes Show – Fox, 11 p.m.

Sunday, March 21

English Premier League
Manchester United vs. Liverpool – Fox Soccer Plus, 9:25 a.m.
Fulham vs. Manchester City – Fox Soccer Plus, 11:30 a.m. (same day coverage)
Blackburn vs. Chelsea – Fox Soccer Channel, noon

Golf
PGA Tour/Transitions Championship, final round – NBC, 3 p.m.

MLB
Baltimore vs. Philadelphia – MLB Network/Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, 1 p.m.
Detroit vs. New York Yankees – Fox Sports Detroit/YES, 1 p.m.
Houston vs. Red Sox – NESN, 1 p.m.
Tampa Bay vs. Pittsburgh – FSN Pittsburgh, 1 p.m.
Cleveland vs. Los Angeles Dodgers – KCAL, 4 p.m.
Colorado vs. Kansas City – FSN Rocky Mountain, 4 p.m./MLB Network, 11 p.m. (same day coverage)
Texas vs. San Diego – KTXA, 4 p.m./MLB Network, 5 p.m. (same day coverage)

MMA
UFC Live: Vera vs. Jones – Versus, 9 p.m.

NASCAR
Sprint Cup Series/Food City 500 – Fox, noon

NBA
San Antonio at Atlanta – ESPN, 8 p.m.
Portland at Phoenix – ESPN, 10:30 p.m.

NHL
New York Rangers at Boston – NBC/TSN, 12:30 p.m.
Calgary at Minnesota – Rogers Sportsnet West/Fox Sports North, 3 p.m.
Buffalo at Carolina -MSG Buffalo/Fox Sports Carolinas , 5 p.m.
Tampa Bay at Florida – Sun Sports/Fox Sports Florida, 5 p.m.
Nashville at St. Louis – Fox Sports Tennessee/Fox Sports Midwest, 6 p.m.
Atlanta at Philadelphia – SportSouth/Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
Phoenix at Dallas – Fox Sports Arizona/Fox Sports Southwest, 7 p.m.
Colorado at Anheim – Altitude/Fox Sports Prime Ticket, 8 p.m.
San Jose at Edmonton – Comcast SportsNet California/Rogers Sportsnet West, 8 p.m.

NHL On The Fly – NHL Network, 8 p.m.

Tennis
BNP Paribas Open/women’s and men’s finals – Fox Sports Net, 3 p.m./Tennis Channel, 8 p.m.

Entertainment
60 Minutes – CBS, 7 p.m.
The Amazing Race 16: Cathy Drone? – CBS, 8 p.m.
Life: Challenges of Life – Animal Planet/Discovery/Discovery Health/Discovery ID/Planet Green/Science/TLC, 8 p.m.
Life: Reptiles and Amphibians -  Animal Planet/Discovery/Discovery Health/Discovery ID/Planet Green/Science/TLC, 9 p.m.
Undercover Boss – CBS, 9 p.m.
The Pacific, Part 2 – HBO, 9 p.m.
Breaking Bad (season premiere) – AMC, 10 p.m.

College Basketball Viewing Picks for 03/20 & 03/21/09

Saturday, March 20

men’s

NCAA Tournament – All games on CBS
2nd round
Road to the Final Four – CBS, noon

1:05 p.m.
Villanova vs. St. Mary’s at Providence, RI – Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery

3:20 p.m.
Butler vs. Murray State at San Jose, CA – Spero Dedes/Bob Wenzel

approximately 3:35 p.m.
Tennessee vs. Ohio at Providence, RI – Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery

5:40 p.m.
Kansas vs. Northern Iowa at Oklahoma City, OK – Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner

5:45 p.m.
Baylor vs. Old Dominion at New Orleans, LA – Dick Enberg/Jay Bilas

approximately 5:50 p.m.
New Mexico vs. Washington at San Jose, CA – Spero Dedes/Bob Wenzel

approximately 8:10 p.m.
Kansas State vs. BYU at Oklahoma City, OK – Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner

approximately 8:15 p.m.
Wake Forest vs. Kentucky at New Orleans, LA – Dick Enberg/Jay Bilas

NCAA March Madness Highlights – CBS College Sports, 10 p.m.

NIT
2nd round
North Carolina at Mississippi State – ESPN, noon
North Carolina State at UAB – ESPNU, 5 p.m.

women’s

NCAA Tournament – All Games on ESPN2
1st round

noon
Hartford vs. LSU at Durham, NC – Beth Mowins/Stephanie Ready
Princeton vs. St. John’s at Tallahassee, FL – Jon Sciambi/Abby Waner
Austin Peay vs. Tennessee at Knoxville, TN – Dave O’Brien/Doris Burke
Bowling Green vs. Michigan State at Louisville, KY – Justin Kutcher/Rebecca Lobo

approximately 2:30 p.m.
Hampton vs. Duke at Durham, NC – Beth Mowins/Stephanie Ready
Louisiana Tech vs. Florida State at Tallahassee, FL – Jon Sciambi/Abby Waner
TCU vs. Dayton at Knoxville, TN – Dave O’Brien/Doris Burke
Liberty vs. Kentucky at Louisville, KY – Justin Kutcher/Rebecca Lobo

8 p.m.
Chattanooga vs. Oklahoma State at Tempe, AZ – Dave Pasch/Brenda VanLengen
Rutgers vs. Iowa at Palo Alto, CA – Terry Gannon/Mary Murphy
Marist vs. Georgetown at Berkeley, CA – Cara Capuano/Kayte Christensen
Portland State vs. Texas A&M at Seattle, WA – Allen Hopkins/Krista Blunk

approximately 10:30 p.m.
Tulane vs. Georgia at Tempe, AZ – Dave Pasch/Brenda VanLengen
UC-Riverside vs. Stanford at Palo Alto, CA – Terry Gannon/Mary Murphy
Fresno State vs. Baylor at Berkeley, CA – Cara Capuano/Kayte Christensen
North Carolina vs. Gonzaga at Seattle, WA – Allen Hopkins/Krista Blunk

Sunday, March 21

men’s

NCAA Tournament – All Games on CBS
2nd round

12:10 p.m.
Syracuse vs. Gonzaga at Buffalo, NY – Gus Johnson/Len Elmore

2:20 p.m.
Ohio State vs. Georgia Tech at Milwaukee, WI – Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel

2:30 p.m.
Michigan State vs. Maryland at Spokane, WA – Tim Brando/Mike Gminski

approximately 2:40 p.m.
West Virginia vs. Missouri at Buffalo, NY – Gus Johnson/Len Elmore

2:50 p.m.
Wisconsin vs. Cornell at Jacksonville, FL – Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg

approximately 4:50 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Xavier at Milwaukee, WI – Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel

approximately 5:00 p.m.
Purdue vs. Texas A&M at Spokane, WA – Tim Brando/Mike Gminski

approximately 5:20 p.m.
Duke vs. Cal at Jacksonville, FL – Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg

NCAA March Madness Highlights – CBS College Sports, 7 p.m.

women’s

NCAA Tournament – All Games on ESPN2
1st round

noon
DePaul vs. Vanderbilt at Cincinnati, OH – Bob Wischusen/Stephanie White
Southern vs. UConn at Norfolk, VA – Mark Kestecher/Stephen Bardo
Vermont vs. Wisconsin at South Bend, IN – Eric Collins/Brooke Weisbrod
St. Francis (PA) vs. Ohio State at Pittsburgh, PA – Pam Ward/Deb Antonelli

approximately 2:30 p.m.
East Tennessee State vs. Xavier at Cincinnati, OH – Bob Wischusen/Stephanie White
James Madison vs. Temple at Norfolk, VA – Mark Kestecher/Stephen Bardo
Cleveland State vs. Notre Dame at South Bend, IN – Eric Collins/Brooke Weisbrod
Middle Tennessee State vs. Mississippi State at Pittsburgh, PA – Pam Ward/Deb Antonelli

7 p.m.
Northern Iowa vs. Nebraska at Minneapolis, MN – Clay Matvick/Leslie Hill
Wisconsin-Green Bay vs. Virginia at Ames, IA – Bob Picozzi/Jimmy Dykes
San Diego State vs. Texas at Austin, TX – Carter Blackburn/LaChina Robinson
Arkansas-Little Rock vs. Georgia Tech at Norman, OK – Dan McLaughlin/Fran Fraschilla

approximately 9:30 p.m.
North Carolina State vs. UCLA at Minneapolis, MN – Clay Matvick/Leslie Hill
Lehigh vs. Iowa State at Ames, IA – Bob Picozzi/Jimmy Dykes
Lamar vs. West Virginia at Austin, TX – Carter Blackburn/LaChina Robinson
South Dakota State vs. Oklahoma – Dan McLaughlin/Fran Fraschilla

Your 2010 NCAA 2nd Round Tip Times For Sunday, March 21

The tip times have now been announced for Sunday, March 20. Let’s take a look at what we have for the tripleheader which will start at noon ET and run until a little past 7 p.m.

CBS SPORTS’ EXCLUSIVE LIVE COVERAGE OF 2010 NCAA DIVISION I MEN’S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP CONTINUES

Tip-Times and Match-ups Announced for Sunday, March 21

CBS Sports’ exclusive live coverage of the 2010 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship continues with second-round action on Saturday, March 20 (1:00-10:00 PM, ET) and concludes on Monday, April 5 with the National Championship game (9:00 PM, ET-conclusion).

Greg Gumbel, Greg Anthony and Seth Davis host THE ROAD TO THE FINAL FOUR® from the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City.  Eric Mann serves as Senior Producer and Bob Matina directs.  Harold Bryant is Vice President, Production, CBS Sports.

Following are the tip times of Sunday’s second-round games, as well as the CBS Sports announce team assignments for the 2010 edition of “March Madness.”

.

SUNDAY, MARCH 21 (12:00 Noon-7:00 PM, ET)

(announce and production teams same as Friday)

12:10 PM – Buffalo I, Syracuse vs. Gonzaga, Gus Johnson/Len Elmore

2:20 PM – Milwaukee I, Ohio State vs. Georgia Tech, Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel

2:30 PM – Spokane I, Michigan State vs. Maryland, Tim Brando/Mike Gminski

approximately 2:40 PM – Buffalo II, West Virginia vs. Missouri, Gus Johnson/Len Elmore

2:50 PM – Jacksonville I, Wisconsin vs. Cornell, Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg

approximately 4:50 PM – Milwaukee II, Pittsburgh vs. Xavier, Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel

approximately 5:00 PM – Spokane II, Purdue vs. Texas A&M, Tim Brando/Mike Gminski

approximately 5:20 PM – Jacksonville II, Duke vs. California, Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg

So there you have the schedule for Sunday. When I get the Sweet Sixteen tip times for Thursday, I will post it forthwith.