Angel Reese has almost set the tone for this Saturday, October 17. She said that the Valkyries would be facing a different Atlanta Dream team this time around. But what is the context? Actually on that day, the WNBA Finals will return after an 8-day-long break, with Game 1 on the schedule.
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For Game 1, the Atlanta Dream will visit the Golden State Valkyries at Chase Center in San Francisco. But the Dream could face some mental pressure, as they suffered two losses (77-66 and 78-75) to the Valkyries at the same venue four months ago. However, as you have seen, Reese has high hopes for her team. Still, the challenge won’t be easy for another reason.
The Valkyries have an impressive 17-5 record at home, while the Dream are 15-7 on the road. Fans will be hoping for a close and exciting battle between the two teams. However, the WNBA Finals won’t be the only major event on Saturday’s sports calendar.
MLB’s League Championship Series will also feature an important matchup, with the Tampa Bay Rays taking on the Cleveland Guardians. The Guardians already lead the series 2-1, so another win would put them one step closer to securing a spot in the World Series. That makes this game especially important for both teams. But the day’s marquee matchups extend far beyond the Finals and LCS. Here’s a look at the broadcast schedules for the day’s games.
WNBA
This Saturday (October 17), the Atlanta Dream will face the Golden State Valkyries in Game 1 of the series at 3:30 PM ET. The matchup takes place at Chase Center in San Francisco, California, with the series tied 0-0 heading into the opener. The coverage will be live on Peacock and NBC.
MLB
On October 17, the Tampa Bay Rays will face the Cleveland Guardians in the League Championship Series at 8:00 PM ET. The game will take place at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio, and the coverage will be on TBS and HBO Max.
College football
Saturday’s college football schedule will feature No. 4 Ohio State visiting No. 5 Indiana in a top-5 clash, headlining a slate of ranked matchups. The noon window will include Georgia State at James Madison, Ball State at Bowling Green, and Charleston Southern at Clemson. Fans will watch the games on ESPN platforms or the ACC Network.
At noon ET, Cincinnati takes on West Virginia on TNT, while Florida faces No. 7 Texas on ABC. No. 16 Mississippi State meets No. 22 LSU on ESPN, and Kansas plays Kansas State on FS1. Other early-window games include No. 25 Northwestern at Michigan State on Peacock, No. 4 Ohio State at No. 5 Indiana on FOX, Pittsburgh at Boston College on ESPN2, and Virginia at No. 24 SMU on The CW. Rutgers and Maryland kick off at 12:30 PM ET on Big Ten Network.
The 1 PM ET slate features Massachusetts at Buffalo, The Citadel at Texas A&M, and Charlotte against Temple, all streaming on ESPN+. Western Michigan faces Central Michigan at 1:30 PM ET, also on ESPN+.
The afternoon schedule begins at 3:30 PM ET with several major matchups. Penn State plays Michigan, while No. 13 Missouri faces No. 9 Ole Miss on SEC Network. No. 6 Alabama meets No. 14 Tennessee on ABC, and Auburn takes on No. 1 Georgia on ESPN. Arizona State faces No. 10 Texas Tech on FOX, while Georgia Tech meets Virginia Tech on ACC Network. North Carolina and Duke play on ESPN2, and UNLV faces Air Force on CBS Sports Network. Northern Illinois also takes on Wyoming on The CW, with Akron meeting Miami (Ohio) on ESPN+.
Tulsa plays Rice at 4:30 PM ET on ESPN+, followed by Troy against Louisiana at 5 PM ET on the same service. Washington State faces Oregon State at 6 PM ET on USA Network.
The evening slate features several ranked teams. At 7 PM ET, Florida State faces No. 3 Miami on ESPN, Arkansas takes on Vanderbilt on ESPN2, and TCU meets Baylor on FS1. Kent State plays South Florida on ESPN+, while Nevada faces North Dakota State on CBS Sports Network. Arkansas State and Southern Miss also kick off at 7 PM ET on ESPN+.
At 7:30 PM ET, Wisconsin faces No. 12 UCLA on NBC, No. 15 Kentucky plays Oklahoma on SEC Network, and No. 18 Oklahoma State meets No. 20 Houston on FOX. No. 2 Notre Dame takes on No. 8 BYU on ABC. Louisville faces Syracuse, while Elon plays Stanford on ACC Network. Navy and UTSA kick off at 8 PM ET on ESPNU, alongside Louisiana Tech against Louisiana-Monroe on ESPN+.
The late-night schedule includes San Jose State at UTEP at 9 PM ET on Mountain West Plus, followed by Ohio against Sacramento State at 10 PM ET on ESPN+. No. 11 Utah faces Colorado at 10:15 PM ET on ESPN. New Mexico plays Hawaii at 10:30 PM ET on FS1, Fresno State meets San Diego State on CBS Sports Network, and No. 21 Wake Forest takes on California on ESPN2. Nebraska closes out the schedule against Oregon at 11 PM ET on FOX.
NHL
This Saturday, the New Jersey Devils will face the Washington Capitals at 1:00 PM ET to open the NHL schedule. At 3:30 PM, the Carolina Hurricanes will take on the Winnipeg Jets, followed by the Vancouver Canucks against the Tampa Bay Lightning at 4:00 PM.
The Seattle Kraken will face the Florida Panthers at 6:00 PM ET. Then, five games will start at 7:00 PM ET: the Dallas Stars will take on the Chicago Blackhawks, the Buffalo Sabres will meet the Montreal Canadiens, the New York Rangers will visit the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Ottawa Senators will face the Philadelphia Flyers, and the San Jose Sharks will travel to Detroit to play the Red Wings. The New York Islanders will also take on the Toronto Maple Leafs at 7:00 PM ET.
At 8:00 PM, the St. Louis Blues will take on the Nashville Predators. The Boston Bruins face the Los Angeles Kings at 9:00 PM, while the late-night schedule features the Pittsburgh Penguins against the Vegas Golden Knights and the Edmonton Oilers against the Utah Mammoth, both starting at 10:00 PM ET.
Most games are available on ESPN+ through NHL Power Play for out-of-market viewers or on local television. NHL Network is also listed for a couple of matchups.
Motorsports
NASCAR’s schedule at Phoenix begins at 2:00 PM ET with O’Reilly Series practice and qualifying, available on ESPN Unlimited. Cup Series practice and qualifying follow at 4:30 PM on truTV and HBO Max.
NASCAR Countdown Live airs on The CW at 7:00 PM, leading into the O’Reilly Series race at 7:30 PM on the same network.
The Cup Series race is scheduled for Sunday at 3:00 PM ET, with coverage on USA Network.
MMA
This Saturday, UFC Fight Night: Buckley vs. Malott will take place in Edmonton, with the preliminary bouts starting at 5:00 PM ET. The main card will follow at 8:00 PM ET. Both will stream on Paramount+, with no pay-per-view purchase required.
Tennis
The Rolex Shanghai Masters semifinals in both singles and doubles will take place in Shanghai, with matches scheduled for the afternoon local time. For viewers in the Eastern Time zone, the games will fall in the early morning. Tennis Channel will provide coverage, although the order of play has not yet been posted.
Golf
The DP World India Championship will continue with Round 3 in the early morning ET, with coverage on Golf Channel.
The LPGA Shanghai tournament will also feature its third round, with play taking place overnight for viewers in the Eastern Time Zone. Golf Channel will broadcast the matches as well.
That’s all for now! Let us know which game or games you plan to watch.