Fox News Channel defended its weekly primetime ratings crown from a fast break by the NBA All-Star Game-fueled TNT, according to Nielsen.

Fox News averaged 2.1 million viewers for the week of February 13-19 for its fourth-straight primetime win, the ratings agency reported. TNT finished second with 1.5 million viewers, aided by the 4.5 million viewers that tuned into the February 19 NBA All-Star Game telecast. 

MSNBC finished third with 1.1 million viewers, followed by HGTV’s 904,000 viewers and ESPN’s 838,000 watchers. History was sixth with 769,000 viewers, followed by Hallmark Channel (763,000), INSP (675,000), USA Network (669,000) and TBS (664,000), said the network. 

Fox News topped the total day chart for the sixth-straight week with an average of 1.4 million viewers, followed by MSNBC (727,000), HGTV (472,000), ESPN (467,000) and CNN (461,000), Nielsen said. ■  

The lineup of live TV sports events taking place over the President’s Day weekend starts on the hardwood with TNT’s coverage of the NBA All-Star Weekend festivities.

On Saturday TNT will offer primetime coverage of the NBA All-Star Saturday Night events, including the skills, three-point and slam dunk contests. On Sunday night TNT and TBS will provide live coverage of the annual NBA All-Star Game, featuring the league's recently crowned all-time leading scorer LeBron James.  

On the race track, Fox will feature Sunday afternoon coverage of NASCAR’s Daytona 500 auto racing event. On the links, CBS and Golf Channel will offer weekend coverage of the PGA Genesis Invitational golf tournament. 

The men’s college basketball lineup of top-ranked teams playing on Saturday includes top-ranked Alabama meeting Georgia on the SEC Network, fourth-ranked UCLA battling California on the Pac-12 Network and fifth-ranked Kansas taking on ninth-ranked Baylor on ESPN. On Sunday, second-ranked Houston plays Memphis on ESPN, while third-ranked Purdue meets Ohio State on CBS.

Several of the top women’s college basketball teams play on Sunday, including top-ranked South Carolina meeting Ole Miss on SEC Network, second-ranked Indiana battling Purdue on BTN, and fifth-ranked LSU traveling to Florida on SEC Network.  On Monday, third-ranked Stanford plays No. 16 UCLA on ESPN2.

On the ice, ABC will televise the NHL's Stadium Series outdoor game between the Washington Capitals and the Carolina Hurricanes from Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, North Carolina. 

In the boxing ring, PPV.com on Saturday will distribute the BLK Prime-produced fight between former four-division champion Adrien Broner and Michael Williams Jr., while DAZN will distribute the WBA featherweight title bout between champion Leigh Wood and challenger Mauricio Lara.  

ESPN and ABC on Saturday will kickoff the inaugural season of the upstart XFL pro football league. ABC will offer the Vegas Vipers-Arlington Renegades game while ESPN and FX will simulcast the primetime matchup between the Orlando Guardians and the Houston Roughnecks. 

Also: Disney Looking to Expand XFL Sponsor Roster as Season Kicks Off

On Sunday, XFL game telecasts include the St. Louis Battlehawks-San Antonio Brahmas contest on ABC and the Seattle Sea Dragons-D.C. Defenders matchup on ESPN.■ 

The TV sports lineup for the weekend leading into the President’s Day holiday starts on the basketball court with the 2022 NBA All-Star Game from Cleveland. 

On Saturday TNT will provide live coverage of the All-Star Skills Challenge, which features the 3-point contest and the Slam Dunk Contest. On Sunday TNT and TBS will offer alternative live feeds of the All-Star Game.

NBC Sports will wrap up its Winter Olympics coverage on Saturday with coverage of the finals in figure skating, ice hockey, speed skating and women’s curling across networks USA, CNBC and NBC. On Sunday NBC will air the closing ceremonies live at 7 am (ET) and repeat in primetime.  The full schedule of Olympics events can be found here.

In other sports, FS1 hits the auto racing circuit Saturday with live coverage of the ARCA Menards Series Lucas Oil 200 race and the Xfinity: Beef. It’s What’s For dinner 300 race.

On the greens, CBS and Golf Channel will provide weekend coverage of the PGA’s Genesis Invitational golf tournament. On the soccer field, USA, NBC and Peacock will offer live Premier League game coverage on Saturday, while USA will offer a Premier League doubleheader on Sunday.

Fox on Sunday will rev up coverage of the NASCAR’s Daytona 500 race, while CBS saddles up to telecast the Professional Bull Riders’ Ticketmaster Invitational championship round. 

ESPN Plus will offer a live Saturday night boxing card headlined by a welterweight matchup between former champions Amir Khan and Kell Brook. The streaming service will also telecast live a UFC Fight Night card featuring a light heavyweight tilt between Johnny Walker and Jamahal Hill.

Top-10 college basketball teams in action on national TV nets Saturday include second-ranked Auburn against Florida on ESPN, third-ranked Arizona facing Oregon on ESPN, and fourth-ranked Kentucky battling No. 25 Alabama on CBS. Also on tap are No. 6 Kansas-West Virginia (ESPN), No. 7 Baylor-TCU (ESPN 2), No. 9 Duke-Florida State (ESPN) and No. 10 Villanova-Georgetown (Fox). Sunday’s lineup includes No. 5 Purdue-Rutgers (FS1) and No. 8 Providence-Butler (FS1).

Turner Sports will take a shot at the sports megacast format with Sunday’s NBA All-Star game by offering alternative, live game feeds on TNT and TBS. 

TNT’s telecast of the 71st NBA All-Star Game will feature the announcing team of Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller and Dwyane Wade, along with reporter Allie LaForce. TBS’ live Inside the All-Star Game coverage will feature comments and analysis from TNT’s Inside the NBA studio team of Earnie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith – along with injured All-Star player Draymond Green – throughout the telecast, said the network.

In addition, TBS’ telecast will feature comments from All-Stars Stephen Curry, Donovan Mitchell and Ja Morant as well as other players, coaches and referees who will be wearing mics throughout the game. 

TBS’ Inside the All-Star Game coverage is similar to ESPN’s Monday Night Football with Peyton & Eli on ESPN2 in which the Manning brothers comment on the game opposite ESPN’s traditional Monday Night Football feed. 

Also: Peyton Manning Signs Expanded Agreement With ESPN, Disney 

Turner Sports will also offer programming on Twitter, NBA Twitter Live, where fans can vote for the player they want an iso-cam to follow during the second half, said the network.

“We always strive to put the fan first and, now more than ever, we have the opportunity to serve them with multiple viewing options that share best-in-class content values,” said Turner Sports Chief Content Officer Craig Barry in a statement. “We’re looking forward to introducing this new, unique format on TBS, and we believe it will entertain fans through an unparalleled blend of sports, culture and unprecedented access.” ■

 The NBA All-Star game highlights a busy sports lineup for the first weekend of March.

Due to the pandemic-driven shortened NBA schedule, Sunday’s TNT NBA All-Star game telecast from Atlanta will also feature coverage of the traditional Slam Dunk and Three-Point contests. In the past those events were featured as part of a two-day NBA All-Star festivities weekend. 

Read also: New Challenges for TNT's NBA All-Star Telecast

Meanwhile, college basketball heats up with weekend tournament action, with such conferences as the Southern Conference, Patriot League, West Coast, Sun Belt, Missouri Valley and Atlantic 10 all featuring playoff action across various networks. Nationally ranked teams will also see action Saturday including fourth-ranked Illinois against seventh-ranked Ohio State (ESPN), eighth-ranked Alabama against Georgia (CBS) and 10th ranked Villanova visiting Providence (Fox). On Sunday, ESPN will telecast the game between third-raked Baylor and 18th-ranked Texas Tech, Fox will carry the fifth-ranked Iowa -25th-ranked Wisconsin game and CBS will air the ninth-ranked Houston-Memphis contest.

Also on Sunday, Fox will feature coverage of NASCAR’s Pennzoil 400 race, and NBC offers NHL action with a Buffalo Sabers-New York Islanders telecast -- part of a quadrupleheader across NBC and NBCSN celebrating “Hockey Day in America.” 

On the ring sports front, ESPN Plus will offer the UFC 259 pay-per-view event featuring the Jan Blachowicz-Israel Adesanya light heavyweight championship main event bout. 

Although the venue isn't exactly on Fashion Avenue, TNT will televise the first-ever NBA fashion show as part of its exclusive coverage of the NBA All-Star Weekend coverage.

Filmed on Friday, Feb. 13 from inside the grand ballroom of Manhattan's Hammerstein Theater, where TNT"s Inside the NBA is setting up shop for the weekend,NBA All-Star All-Style presented by Samsung Galaxy will air on Valentine's Day at 6: 30 p.m. (ET).

The one-hour show, executive produced by LeBron James’ Springhill Production Company and in association with Turner Sports and IMG, will feature a runway competition including James Harden, Klay Thompson, Chandler Parsons, DeMarcus Cousins, Zach LaVine and other NBA stars, along with IMG models Erin Heatherton (pictured), Chanel Iman, Rachel Hilbert and Shanina Shaik. The musical soundtrack to the event will include live performances by platinum-selling recording artists Flo Rida andWale along with a set from DJ NEM.. Steve Mayer of IMG joins James as executive producer of the show.

The show will consist of three rounds – dressing for the boardroom, a night out, and attire worn to the game – with the players teaming with a stylist and model as they walk the runway. The first round will consist of eight players, with four players advancing to the second round and the top two competing in the finals.

The show will include integration with TNT’s Inside the NBA as Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith join the judging panel alongside designer John Elliott, WNBA star Elena Delle Donne and GQ style editor Will Welch, while Shaquille O’Neal serves as the emcee. Additionally, Kevin Hart will provide commentary and conduct interviews backstage, and John Wall will be a contributor to the show while Turner Sports style correspondent Damaris Lewis hosts behind-the-scenes segments.

“The NBA and its players have always been at the forefront of style and entertainment and this show falls directly at that intersection of sports and pop culture,” said Craig Barry, senior vice president of production and executive creative director, Turner Sports.  “This will be a fun, innovative showcase, as an extension of All-Star weekend, that serves as a great opportunity to create an entertaining experience for passionate and casual fans of all ages.”