A rainout in the ALCS is bumping Ohio State-Northwestern to BTN. Also: NBA TV will use an on-site broadcast team for some games this season; ESPN is extending an MMA writer; ESPN’s Richard Jefferson will reportedly work some games this season.
Baseball bumps Buckeyes to BTN
With a Wednesday rainout pushing the series back a day, Game 5 of the Astros-Yankees American League Championship Series has been rescheduled for Friday night on FS1, bumping the network’s originally-scheduled Ohio State-Northwestern college football game to Big Ten Network.
BTN, which is in several million fewer homes than FS1, will air the game exclusively. The network had been scheduled to carry men’s soccer and women’s volleyball on Friday night, with those events now scheduled for FS2.
In other ALCS scheduling news, Fox Sports voice Joe Buck will miss Thursday’s Game 4, which conflicts with his Thursday Night Football duties. It will be the first time that he has missed an LCS game. Joe Davis will replace him on the call. [Fox Sports, Houston Chronicle 10.12]
NBA TV to use on-site broadcast team for some games
NBA TV is debuting a new featured game window this season that will include a regular on-site broadcast team, Turner Sports announced Wednesday. Titled “NBA TV Center Court,” the new series will feature play-by-play voice Brian Anderson and analyst Greg Anthony calling games on-site regularly, if not every week. Outside of playoff games, NBA TV has traditionally relied on remote or local announcers for its games.
The new series replaces NBA TV’s discontinued “Players Only” broadcasts. [Turner Sports]
ESPN extends MMA reporter Okamoto
ESPN has reached a multi-year contract extension with mixed martial arts reporter Brett Okamoto, who will continue in his current roles as a reporter, analyst and co-host of ESPN’s UFC shoulder programming. Okamoto has been with ESPN since 2010. [ESPN PR 10.16]
ESPN’s Jefferson will reportedly work some games this season
ESPN NBA analyst Richard Jefferson will serve as a game analyst on select occasions this season, The Big Lead reported Wednesday. Jefferson, who joined ESPN last year, already has game analyst experience with YES Network. As noted in a previous article, he is taking on an expanded role in ESPN’s revamped NBA studio this year. [The Big Lead 10.16]
