March 1, 2024 by Philip Lewenstein

All in with Saturday TV Sports Splurge

The last weekend in January is one of the most exciting times on the sports calendar, culminating in the National Football League (NFC) championship games on Sunday to determine the Super Bowl participants from the National Football Conference (NFC) and the American Football Conference (AFC).

Seeking an appetizer for the Sunday games, I scanned the TV sports schedule for Saturday, January 27. The array of choices was infinite—a veritable feast of college and professional basketball games on a wide range of networks. One also could enjoy auto racing, golf, hockey, horse racing, and tennis.

If I wanted to focus solely on Minnesota teams, I could watch the Gophers at Penn State and the Timberwolves at San Antonio. For hockey, I could tune in Minnesota against Boston in the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL), the Gopher women at Minnesota State University Mankato, the Gopher men at Michigan State, and Anaheim at the Wild.

On one day, I could watch NBA greats LeBron James, Steph Curry, and Nikola Jokic as well as rising superstars Anthony Edwards and Victor Wembanyama. I could view my two favorite female college basketball stars: Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers.

In the midst of the Covid pandemic in 2020, I stated that I could get along without TV sports  (“Not Missing TV Sports,” April 27, 2020, www.philsfocus.com).

A year later, however, I confessed that I had relapsed after a pause in my TV sports addiction (“Confessions of a TV Sports Addict: Perspective in the Pandemic Era,” May 9, 2021, www.philsfocus.com).

I explained that I could keep sports in perspective, understanding the outsized role of money—sports as big business, the high-stakes competition for TV money. And I noted that sports are intertwined with economic, political, and social trends.

Now, in 2024, I have come full circle. The smorgasbord of games available on a weekend day like January 27 makes it impossible to quell my TV sports addiction. I’m back and all in.

31 Basketball Games Available on Several Networks

The basketball schedule offered 31 games beginning with four at 11 a.m. and ending with two games starting at 9 p.m. I was especially excited about five Big Ten games, an NBA tripleheader as well as a Timberwolves contest, and two women’s games.

Basketball games were available on ESPN (five), ESPN2 (six), BTN (four), CW (2), Fox (four),

FS1 (four), CBS (one), ABC (three), BSNX (one), and ESPNU (one). Twenty-one games were included in my cable package, ten on “regular” networks.

On other days, I watch basketball on additional networks such as TNT, TBS, CBSSN, BSN, truTV, NBC, and NBA TV. I rely on my large cable bundle menu, which also provides the major league baseball, hockey, and NFL networks. I have only streamed NFL Thursday night games on Amazon Prime. I don’t yet subscribe to Peacock but am tempted because it is carrying several college games.

The viewing day started for me at 11 a.m. when I turned on the BTN for Nebraska at Maryland. As a child in the 50s and 60s, I looked forward to the Big Ten game of the week every Saturday afternoon. Now, thanks in part to the availability of the Big Ten Network, I can see several conference games in one day.

I tracked Indiana at Illinois (2 p.m., Fox), Iowa at Michigan (4 p.m., FS1), Minnesota at Penn State (5:30 p.m.,  BTN), and Ohio State at Northwestern (7:30 p.m.,  BTN).

The Gophers ended a four-game losing streak by winning at Penn State. They trailed by 16 points to open the second half but outscored the Nittany Lions 52-27 the rest of the way.

Women’s Games Generate Big Audiences, Rising Revenues

I have become especially interested in women’s college games, and this day did not disappoint. Women’s sports are thriving, according to a new report from Deloitte, a leading business consulting firm. TV revenue is a significant factor.

Iowa’s overtime loss at Ohio State on January 21 averaged 1.93 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, the largest audience for a regular-season women’s game since 2010. The Hawkeyes are set to become the first women’s basketball team to play on all four broadcast networks (CBS, ABC, NBC, and Fox).

Elite women’s sports will generate more than $1 billion in revenue in 2024, the first time they have passed this milestone, the report predicts. Deloitte defines elite sports as professional leagues worldwide along with top levels of amateur sports, such as NCAA Division 1 competitions and the Olympics.

At 1 p.m., I was ready to watch Nebraska at Iowa (BTN), featuring Caitlin Clark, arguably the most exciting player in college basketball this year. Iowa won 92-73 with Clark scoring 38 points, 28 in the second half. She made eight of fifteen three-point shots.

By 7 p.m., it was time to watch the University of Connecticut, featuring Minnesota native Bueckers, host Notre Dame (Fox). The Irish surprised the Huskies 82-67. Bueckers scored 17 points in an off night, but I was introduced to Notre Dame’s sensational freshman, Hannah Hidalgo, who had 34 points and 10 rebounds

Meanwhile, I was monitoring three NBA games on ABC: Miami at New York, Philadelphia at Denver, and the Lakers at Golden State, my two favorite NBA teams.

The Lakers-Warriors game was a classic. The Lakers won 145-144 in two overtimes on two free throws by James, now 39 years old. He finished with 36 points, a career-high 20 rebounds, and 12 assists. Curry scored 46 points for Golden State.

I managed to catch the end of the Timberwolves disappointing 113-112 loss (BSNX) in San Antonio as Wembanyama, the 7’4” 20-year-old rookie from France had 23 points and 10 rebounds.

Seven Hockey Games Compete for Viewers

Although I focused mostly on basketball, seven hockey games were available. At 3 p.m. (BSNX), Minnesota’s PWHL team played at Boston, losing 4-3 in overtime. In a 2 p.m. (Fox9+) game, the Gopher women defeated MSU Mankato 2-1 in overtime.

Two college men’s games were aired. In a 3 p.m. (BTN) game, the Gopher men won 5-1 at Michigan State. At 6 p. m. (Fox9+), Omaha played at St. Cloud State.

Three pro games were available. On the National Hockey League Network, Boston played at Philadelphia at 11:30 a.m., and the New York Rangers played at Ottawa at 6 p.m. The hockey day ended dismally as Anaheim rallied to defeat the Wild 3-2 (8 p.m., BSN).

After the Wild, I turned off the TV and retired for the night, dreaming of game highlights by James, Curry, and Clark, to be rested for “championship Sunday.”

On Sunday morning, nursing a minor hangover from Saturday’s TV sports, I decided to forego the 11 basketball games, the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, the Australian Open men’s tennis final, the Rolex 24 auto racing at Daytona, a swimming event, and an NHL game. By 2 p.m., I was rested and ready for the AFC title game.

I started watching sports on TV as a child before cable when the number and variety of games were limited. The advent and growth of cable greatly expanded TV sports options, and one can watch almost every game on a team’s schedule thanks to regional sports networks.

Choices Are Limitless but Future Unclear

The choices are limitless—growing and changing. In early February, Disney’s ESPN, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery announced a new sports-streaming venture that promises to make life easier for consumers frustrated with all the platforms they have to sign up for to watch their favorite teams play (“Media Deal to Transform Sports Watching,” by Isabella Simonetti and Amol Sharma, February 8, 2024, The Wall Street Journal).

The service will combine in one streaming package all the content those companies offer—from the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB to college basketball and football. This deal, according to Simonetti and Sharma, could be the tipping point that dooms cable TV.

“It will reshape deals between networks and leagues for years to come and will go a long way toward determining the legacies of some big-name CEOs,” the Journal reporters said.

Commenting on the TV sports landscape, Journal columnist Jason Gay speculates that future Super Bowls may be available on a pay-per-view model although the NFL may not be in a hurry to change (“Would You Pay to Watch Super Bowl?” February 8, 2024).

“The TV business is changing,” Gay said. “Overall broadcast audiences are shrinking, cable subscribers are fleeing, streaming is a rising but nascent business—and the landscape is going to change, perhaps radically.”

Future developments in TV sports are unclear, but for one wonderful day—Saturday, January 27—I was thrilled to be able to splurge on watching so many games featuring my favorite teams and performers.