Media day special on October 23 tips off Pac-12 Networks' men's hoops coverage

Oct 15, 2014

UCLA legend Bill Walton is back with Pac-12 Networks’ on-air broadcast team, while former Cal head coach Mike Montgomery makes his Networks debut

‘Ambassadors of the Game: Pac-12 Men’s Basketball All-Stars’ special premieres Thursday, October 23 at 7:00 p.m. PT

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (October 15, 2014) – Fans are in for another exciting season of men’s basketball on Pac-12 Networks that features 147 games, complementary programming and a bevy of knowledgeable personalities.

It all begins Thursday, October 23 at 10:00 a.m. PT with the ‘Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Media Day Special,’ live from the Pac-12 Studios in San Francisco, site of the media day festivities. Throughout the three-hour show, host Mike Yam is joined by Lamar Hurd, Don MacLean, plus Mike Montgomery and guest analyst Kevin O’Neill giving fans an inside look at media day with interviews from all players and coaches in attendance, all exclusively on Pac-12 Networks, Pac-12.com/now and our Pac-12 Now app.

Additionally, the ‘Countdown to Tipoff’ microsite is now live at Pac-12.com/2014-15pac12hoopsmediaday where a live stream of the entire podium sessions with players and coaches will be available for all fans to view.

Following the media day special, fans will be treated to more exclusive men’s basketball content with the primetime premiere of Ambassadors of the Game: Pac-12 Men’s Basketball All-Stars at 7:00 p.m. PT. The 30-minute documentary takes viewers along the 10-day trip featuring Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak and 13 players representing 10 of the Conference’s 12 programs as they compete against professional teams in China.

In addition to the programming, Pac-12 Networks is excited to welcome a mix of faces, both returning and new as part of its group of talented on-air personalities bringing fans all the action and analysis surrounding Pac-12 men’s hoops.

Pac-12 legend and Hall of Famer Bill Walton is back behind the mic, bringing his unique game analysis to Pac-12 Network broadcasts, while former Pac-12 head coaches Mike Montgomery begins his first full season as an analyst on game and studio coverage.

Montgomery joins Pac-12 Networks after a 34-year head coaching career spanning both college and the NBA. Mostly recently, Montgomery spent six seasons as head coach at Cal, compiling a record of 130-73 before announcing his retirement in April. Prior to the Bears, he spent 18 years as head coach at Stanford where he earned four Pac-10 Coach of the Year honors and was named Naismith Coach of the Year in 2000. His lengthy career also included coaching stints with the University of Montana and the Golden State Warriors. With an overall record of 677-317 in college basketball, he is one of only 84 men’s coaches to record 600 wins.

In addition to O’Neill and Montgomery, veteran play-by-play voice Spero Dedes also joins Pac-12 Networks this season. Dedes holds an extensive amount of broadcasting experience as former radio voice of the Los Angeles Lakers (2005-2011) and New York Knicks (2011-2014). Currently, Dedes teams with Solomon Wilcots calling NFL games on CBS and will enter his sixth season on the networks’ NCAA hoops coverage this spring.

Network veterans including Don MacLean, Ted Robinson, Kevin Calabro, Lamar Hurd, Matt Muehlebach, JB Long and Roxy Bernstein also return to game coverage this season.

Pac-12 Networks’ full play-by-play and analyst roster for men’s basketball can be found below:

Analysts:

Dan Belluomini
Dan Dickau
Lamar Hurd
Don MacLean
Mike Montgomery
Matt Muehlebach
Drew Shiller
Bill Walton

Play-by-play:

Roxy Bernstein
Kevin Calabro
Rich Cellini
Spero Dedes
JB Long
Ted Robinson

Men’s basketball tips off on Pac-12 Networks Saturday, October 18 with a tape-delayed broadcast of Arizona’s Red-Blue Game at 7:30 p.m. PT. Each program will be featured at least 11 times: Arizona (14), Arizona State (18), Cal (19), Colorado (13), Oregon (16), Oregon State (21), Stanford (11), UCLA (12), USC (15), Utah (15), Washington (15), Washington State (19).

Out of 147 total telecasts, 49 of those are regular season Conference matchups, starting on Friday, January 2 at Noon PT with Stanford hosting Washington State, followed by Washington at California at 7:00 p.m. PT. The Networks’ eight-game coverage of the Pac-12 Tournament from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas begins Wednesday, March 11 with four first round games beginning at Noon PT.

The complete 2014-15 Pac-12 Networks men’s basketball televised schedule can be seen here.