A bevy of live sports content is slated for the penultimate weekend in February. 

ESPN will air live early morning coverage of the Australian Open women’s finals match between Jennifer Brady and Naomi Osaka, followed on Sunday morning with the men’s finals matchup. 

ABC will hit the basketball court Saturday night with its telecast of the Miami Heat-Los Angeles Lakers game -- a rematch of the 2020 NBA Finals -- while Sunday night ESPN will telecast the Brooklyn Nets-Los Angeles Clippers game in primetime. 

Showtime and ESPN will feature live Saturday night primetime boxing cards. Showtime’s telecast will offer a main event fight featuring former welterweight champion Adrien Broner against Jovanie Santiago, while ESPN will offer a junior lightweight title fight between champion Miguel Berchelt and Oscar Valedez. 

Read Also: Showtime Pins Down Bellator MMA Deal

On Sunday afternoon Fox will air the Pro Bowler’s Association Players Championship, followed by coverage of the NASCAR Cup Series auto racing event. Also on Sunday, Golf Channel and CBS will team to air the final rounds of the PGA Tour Genesis Invitational golf tournament. 

College basketball continues to march toward next month’s March Madness tournament with several matchups between top-ranked schools. On Sunday third-ranked Michigan travels to face fourth-ranked Ohio State on CBS  in the weekend’s marquee matchup, while on Saturday ABC will air the matchup between 13th-ranked West Virginia and 12-ranked Texas, and ESPN will televise 15th-ranked Texas Tech against 23rd-ranked Kansas. 

NBC will take to the rink for a Saturday afternoon NHL matchup between the Las Vegas Golden Nights and the Colorado Avalanche and on Sunday with coverage of the Philadelphia Flyers-Boston Bruins game. 

NASCAR's return to the airwaves highlights a diverse lineup of live sports events scheduled for the three-day weekend.

NASCAR launched its 2021 Cup Series this week, leading up to Fox’s live coverage of Sunday's Daytona 500 event. On Saturday, FS1 offers live coverage of NASCAR’s Xfinity Series as well as the ACRA Menards Series Racing event.  

Also Read: Sports and OTT: Streaming Could Squeeze the Last Vestige of Appointment TV

The Tennis Channel and ESPN2 will take the courts to offer three-day weekend coverage of the Australian Open, pro tennis' first of four Grand Slam events in 2021. On the greens, Golf Channel and CBS will tag team to provide weekend coverage of the PGA Tour’s Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament. 

On the combat sports front, ESPN Plus will offer live coverage of the UFC 258 pay-per-view event on Saturday, headlined by the Kamaru Usman-Gilbert Burns welterweight championship fight.

ABC will continue its Saturday night primetime NBA coverage with the Brooklyn Nets-Golden State Warriors contest, while NBC will offer Valentine’s Day NHL coverage of the Washington Capitals-Pittsburgh Penguins game. 

Streaming service Peacock Premium will offer live weekend coverage of the 2021 Guinness Six Nations Championship Rugby tournament, while NBCSN provides live weekend coverage of four Premier League soccer contests.

Also Read: Six Nations Rugby on Peacock Premium. NBCSN

College basketball’s top-ranked team Gonzaga leads a heavy load of games over the holiday weekend. On Saturday, Gonzaga will travel to San Francisco to face the Dons on ESPN2, while fourth-ranked Ohio State hosts Indiana on ESPN, Fifth-ranked Villanova meets 19th-ranked Creighton on Fox and ninth-ranked Virginia plays North Carolina on ESPN. 

On Sunday, CBS will air the game between third-ranked Michigan and 21st-ranked Wisconsin. President’s Day will feature ninth-ranked Virginia against 17th ranked Florida State on ESPN.

In recognition of Serena Williams' Wimbledon Tennis championship win today, Tennis Channel will air Williams' sequential Grand Slam finals victories beginning Monday.

Tennis Channel on July 13 will air in chronological order Williams' 2014 US Open, 2015 Australian Open and French Open, as well as today's Wimbledon win, according to network officials.

In addition starting July 12, the network's Tennis Channel Plus digital subscription service will feature a fully dedicated section to the "Serena Slam" and will run her US Open, Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon wins on a 24/7 loop, said network officials. 

Tennis Channel will provide coverage of the upcoming 2015 US Open beginning Aug. 31. If Williams wins the U.S. Open, she will be the first female player to win all four Grand Slams in the same year since Steffi Graff in 1988, said network officials.

It was the 2014 Australian Open that ushered in some changes at the top of the men’s and women’s tennis world.

When Ana Ivanovic upset Serena Williams in the round of 16, 2014 began an uneven year for the world No. 1, who also suffered early exits at the French Open and Wimbledon, before she regained her form and captured the U.S. Open. In between, former Slam champions Maria Sharapova  (French) and Petra Kvitova (Wimbledon) added majors, while Simona Halep and Eugenie Bouchard burst onto the scene.

Ivanovic’s victory in Melbourne Park opened the door for Li Na to take home the title. With the Chinese player retiring from the sport, a new woman will be crowned Aussie queen.

Stan Wawrinka beat three-time defending champion Novak Djovokic in the quarterfinals, returning the favor for a marathon loss against the Serb Down Under in 2013. The long-time No. 2 Swiss player then surprised Rafael Nadal to win the championship.

Bookending the year of upsets, Martin Cilic, who will miss the Happy Slam with ani njury, beat the rising Japanese player Kei Nishikora  in the final of the U.S. Open. Wawrinka and Cilic thus joined 2009 U.S. Open king, Juan Martin Del Potro, who also had to withdraw on the eve of the tourney with his lingering left wrist problem, as the only men to interrupt the decade-long Grand Slam domination of the "Big 4": Federer, Nadal, Djokovic and Andy Murray.

This year, world No. 1 Djoker and No. 4 Wawrinka could meet in a semfinal rubber match, while a recovering-from-multiple injuries Nadal might see old foe Roger Federer in the bottom half.

How happy would executives at the worldwide leader be if that form held at the Happy Slam. Starting on Sunday, Jan. 18 at 7 p.m., ESPN 2 and ESPN will combine to present more than 100 live hours on television, while ESPN3 will serve up to 800 more digitally, as fans will be able to choose from action on up to 13 courts.  ESPN’s 31st consecutive Australian Open will culminate with the women’s and men’s championships live on ESPN at 3 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 31, and Sunday, Feb. 1, with an encore presentation Super Bowl morning at 9 a.m.

As part of its Grand Slam alliance with ESPN, Tennis Channel is in the game Down Under for an eighth consecutive year. Tennis Channel will have 11 consecutive days and 40 hours of live coverage. Adding encore replays, highlights, a special preview and the new daily preview show Live at the Australian Open, the network will devote close to 200 hours over the fortnight.

Under their alliance, ESPN produces the Australian Open for both networks, with each utilizing its own commentators and cross-promoting their combined television offerings. Conversely, Tennis handles production when the networks play as a doubles team at Roland Garros.

Unlike many Grand Slams, the 2015 Australian features several intriguing opening-round battles. Nishikora will battle former top 10 player Nicolas Almagro, while Nadal meets the veteran Mikhail Youzny.

Distaff interest will center on the former two-time champion Victoria Azarenka’s encounter with Sloane Stephens, a rematch of their controversial and contentious 2013 semifinal that followed the American's elimination of her idol Williams. By the by, Azarenka, Stephens former world No. 2 Vera Zvonareva, Williams' 2014 French and Wimbledon conquerors Garbine Muguruz and Alize Cornet, plus Jelena Jankovic and Dominica Hantuchova are all in Serena’s part of the draw.

Williams, should she survive her perilous path, could meet friend Caroline Wozniacki -- seeded eighth but suffering from a wrist injury -- in the quarters. A Williams' title would be her 19th singles Slam, surpassing the 18 trophies also held by Chris Evert and Martina Navritilova. Fourth-seeded Kvitova is slated to meet No. 6 Aga Radwanska in the other quarter in the top half of the draw.

The bottom half features the possible confrontation between Halep and Ivanovic, this year’s third and fifth seeds. The last quarter could showcase the telegenic twosome of No. 2 Sharapova and  Bouchard, the comely Canadian, who succumbed to Na in last year’s semis.

On the men’s side, if the seeds hold up, Djokovic would meet No.8  Milos Raonic, the hard-serving Canadian, and Wawrinka would engage his U.S. Open vanquisher, No. 5 Nishikori.

In the bottom half, No. 3 Nadal’s path would take him into No. 7 Tomas Berdych, while the second-seeded Federer might match with No. 6 Murray, who lost to the Swiss in last year’s quarters and the 2010 final and to Djokovic in the 2011 and 2013 championship matches.

Shoule Nole or Fed win they would set the Open era record with five men's Down Under diadems.

ESPN2 tosses the first ball into TV play on Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. (ET) and will present daily, marathon, overnight telecasts from Melbourne, primarily starting at 9 p.m. through the women’s semifinals. At the money end of the tourney, coverage switches to ESPN (see schedule below). WatchESPN, now available to some 75 million homes, will stream all of the action on the two networks to authenticated viewers.

The worldwide leader is bringing its veteran tennis team Down Under: Australians Cliff Drysdale and Darren Cahill; the McEnroe brothers, Patrick and John, and three named Chris: Fowler, Evert and McKendry. Additionally, former players and coaches Pam Shriver, Mary Jo Fernandez, Brad Gilbert and Jason Goodall are scheduled to appear, as will essayist Tom Rinaldi.

As it does with the other majors, Tennis Channel will introduce a review/preview show with this year’s Aussie tourney.

Hosted by Emmy Award winner Brett Haber, Hall of Famers Jim Courier and Navratilova, and Sports Illustrated’s Jon Wertheim  Live at the Australian Open will air most nights from 6 p.m.-7 p.m. immediately preceding the start of the day’s play Down Under. 

The network’s on-air team also includes Bill Macatte, Justin Gimelstob and Lindsey Davenport.

Tennis' schedule calls for 11 consecutive days spanning 40 hours of live coverage at this year’s Australian Open (see schedule). With encore replays, highlights, a special preview and the new Live at the Australian Open, the network plans to present some 200 hours linear hours.

Hybrid digital service, Tennis Channel Plus, combining TVE accessibility and bonus match coverage, will home in on one court during the tournament's second week, streaming the action to its subscriber base.

ESPN AUSTRALIAN OPEN 2015 (all time ET)

Tennis Channel’s Live Australian Open Coverage (all times ET)

Date                                                    Time                           Event                                                 

Sunday, Jan. 18                                   6 p.m.-7 p.m.              Pre-Tournament Welcome

Monday, Jan. 19                                 6 p.m.-9 p.m.              FirstRound

Tuesday, Jan. 20                                 6 p.m.-9 p.m.              SecondRound

Wednesday, Jan. 21                            6p.m.-9 p.m.              Second Round

Thursday, Jan. 22                               6 p.m.-11 p.m.              ThirdRound

Friday, Jan. 23                                    6 p.m.-9 p.m.              ThirdRound

Saturday, Jan. 24                                6 p.m.-9 p.m.              Round of 16

Sunday, Jan. 25                                   6 p.m.-9 p.m.              Round of 16

Monday, Jan. 26                                 6 p.m.-9 p.m.              Men’s and Women’s Quarterfinals

Tuesday, Jan. 27                                 6 p.m.-9 p.m.              Men’s and Women’s Quarterfinals

Wednesday, Jan. 28                            6p.m.-9:30 p.m.         TBA

Thursday, Jan. 29                               10 p.m.-3:30 a.m.       Mixed Doubles Semifinal, Women’s Doubles Final

Saturday, Jan. 31                                5:30 a.m.-8 a.m.         Men’sDoubles Final

Sunday, Feb. 1                                    12 a.m.-2 a.m.            Mixed Doubles Final

Buckeye CableSystem has launched Tennis Channel as part of a multiyear carriage agreement with the dedicated racquet sports service.

The pact, financial terms of which were not disclosed, came in time for Buckeye HDTV Basic Pak subscribers to watch Tennis Channel's coverage of the 2015 Australian Open both on the linear network, as well as myriad devices via the TV Everywhere component of the agreement. The MSO is offering its customers TV Everywhere access to the network at no additional cost. Subscribers who have the HDTV Basic Pak are able to watch Tennis Channel’s linear coverage stream on the go through a multitude of platforms, including smartphones, tablets and computers from anywhere in the U.S.

“We’re excited to welcome Buckeye viewers back to Tennis Channel in time for the Australian Open,” said senior vice president of distribution Patrck Wilson. “Tennis Channel has 90 percent of the live tennis on U.S. television today, and with TV Everywhere capabilities tennis fans can tune in when, where and how they want to.”

Noted Buckeye chief administration officer Brad Mefferd: “We are happy that Tennis Channel is back on our programming lineup. The network does a great job of covering a sport so many of our customers follow.”

Tennis Channel's Australian Open coverage will be led by Bill Macatee, and feature Lindsay Davenport, Martina Navratilova, Jim Courier, Jon Wertheim, Justin Gimelstob and Brett Haber.

All told, Tennis will present nearly 200 hours of tournament coverage from Down Under, including more than 30 live match hours, 60 hours of encore replays and 12 hours of lead-in show Australian Open Live.

Buckeye served Tennis in the past under the network’s initial National Cable Television Cooperative agreement.