We’re already making plans for March Madness as the hoops continue going strong throughout the month of February. But, of course, that’s not all we have on our schedule.
Here’s a quick rundown of basketball this week:
- Joe Cox braved the fierce cold at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Thursday for some NBA action as the Los Angeles Lakers faced the Minnesota Timberwolves. The C43 truck has one more job in Minnesota before she can get back down to warmer weather.
- Dave Mitchell was in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, with the Pittsburgh truck at Sojka Pavilion at Bucknell University on Monday when the Bucknell Bisons took on the Colgate Raiders. Mitch heads down to WVU Coliseum in Morgantown, West Virginia, on Saturday for more women’s basketball when the Oklahoma Sooners take on the West Virginia Mountaineers.
- Rick Varney and the Arizona truck were at Ryan Center in Kingston, Rhode Island, on Tuesday when the Richmond Spiders took on the Rhode Island Rams. Rick heads to Conte Forum at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, for women’s basketball when Notre Dame Fighting Irish take on the Boston College Eagles.
- Dave Buckman and K46 were at the Stuart Siegel Center in Richmond, Virginia, on Valentine’s Day when the Davidson Wildcats took on Virginia Commonwealth University. Buckman’s back in Virginia at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville for more women’s NCAA action when the Miami Hurricanes face the Virginia Cavaliers.
- Steve Chaisson headed to Boise, Idaho, to meet up with C47 and head to the Taco Bell Arena on Wednesday when the Nevada Wolf Pack faced the Boise State Broncos. From there Steve takes C47 to Utah and hands her off to Todd Harvey, who will continue on to Dee Glen Smith Spectrum at Utah State when the Nevada Wolf Pack face the Aggies on Saturday.
- Steve Hagerty and K18 spent most of their week at their second home, the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York. They were there on Wednesday when the North Carolina State Wolfpack took on the Syracuse Orange, and again on Thursday when the women’s team took on the Duke Blue Devils.
- On Thursday, Wes Hill and C36 were at the Galen Center in Los Angeles when the Oregon Ducks took on the USC Trojans in more men’s college basketball. Wes has another “at-home” transmission under his belt, and there are more to come for our friends at ESPN next week.
- Steve Toth will head to Statesboro, Georgia, with C41 on Friday when Georgia State Panthers takes on Georgia Southern Eagles in a yet another seven-channel at-home transmission for ESPN.
- Dennis Smith and the Columbia truck head up to Case Gym in Boston, Massachusetts, on Saturday when the Navy Midshipmen take on the Boston University Terriers in men’s basketball. From there Dennis heads right back down the highway to the Liacouras Center at Temple University in North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, when the Houston Cougars take on the Temple Owls.
- It’s the NBA All-Star weekend here in Los Angeles, and PSSI Global Services is well-represented down at the Staples Center and surrounding venues for all the exciting action. Mark Huss is at the helm of the Atlas truck for a multi-camera production and uplink for NBA TV. Mark’s handling all the press conferences and various live shots of the hoops hoopla throughout the weekend.
- We’re also just around the corner at the Verizon Up Arena at the Los Angeles Convention Center for Friday night’s NBA All-Star Celebrity Game. This year’s teams are Team Lakers and Team Clippers in honor of the two LA-based NBA teams. Team Lakers is coached by ESPN’s “The Jump” host Rachel Nichols, actor Michael B. Jordan and Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame member Tracy McGrady. Team Clippers is coached by ESPN commentator Katie Nolan, former NBA Celtics player Paul Pierce and actor/rapper Common. Chris is providing a multiplexed transmission for ESPN so basketball fans can enjoy every bit of this fun-filled night.
K19 at the All-Star Game
A little Rocky Mountain hockey:
Mike Sheehan and DC9 will be at the Broadmoor World Arena in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on Friday for college ice hockey when the Colorado College Tigers face the Denver Pioneers.
A little tennis:
Mati Kerpen and the Junior truck have a full weekend ahead of them as they head to Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York for tennis with the 2018 New York Open. Known previously as the Memphis Open, this event is one of the ATP World Tour’s longest-standing competitions. This will be the first year they are playing at the Nassau Coliseum, with the winner taking home a purse of close to $120,000. It promises to be an exciting event for new and lifelong fans alike.
A little golf:
John Jennings and C21 are at the Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California, for Golf Channel this weekend to cover the Genesis Open. This tournament at the Riviera Country Club, often considered one of the best fields in golf, marks the return of Tiger Woods. He will be playing among the world’s best golfers, competing for a purse of over $7 million.
Chris Golden and C32 are at TwinEagles’ Talon Course in Naples, Florida, for the Chubb Classic this week. This nationally televised event attracts PGA Tour champions, legends from the World Golf Hall of Fame and, of course, players from the Official Money list — but the biggest winner is charity, including the host charity The First Tee of Naples/Collier. What a great weekend for golf!
A little racing:
Ben Bradshaw and Kyle Meyer were with C27 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, for the Duel early in the week. Then, on Sunday, it’s the Daytona 500! This year is the 60th Daytona 500, with Dale Earnhardt Jr. as the Grand Marshall of the “Great American Race.” The pole position went to Alex Bowman and Denny Hamlin will start in the front row as well. Gentlemen … start your engines!
And a lot of fighting:
- On Sunday, Chris Hovden will be at MusclePharm headquarters in Burbank, California, with K19 for the Eddie Bravo Invitational. This 16-man invitation-only event includes the featherweights and a submission-only combat jiu-jitsu tournament.
- Ron Ford in K26 and John May in C31 will be at Frank Erwin Center at the University of Texas in Austin on Sunday for UFC Fight Night, when Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone takes on Yancy Medeiros as part of the main card in a welterweight bout. The main card also includes Derrick Lewis facing Marcin Tybura in a heavyweight bout; the lightweight bout between James Vick and Francisco Trinaldo; Thiago Alves vs. Curtis Millender in the welterweight division; Steven Peterson facing off with Brandon Davis in the bantamweight class; and Thibault Gouti taking on Sage Northcutt in the another lightweight bout. Engineer in charge (EIC) Jim Flowers and senior project manager Keith Valeri round out PSSI Global Services’ fight card in what will be yet another flawless domestic and international distribution for our friends at UFC and for MMA fans around the world.
- We’ll spend Saturday night at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas working Showtime boxing when two-division world champion Danny “Swift” Garcia faces former champion Brandon “Bam Bam” Rios in the welterweight match-up main event. Also on the main card: David Benavidez defending his WBC World Super Middleweight title in a rematch against Ronald Gavril, and the WBC welterweight bout between Ray Robinson of Philadelphia, Penssylvania, and Yordenis Ugás of Cuba. Wes Hill is there for the domestic transmission while Ray Loyko handles the international distribution. Project manager Victor Verno will be there to ensure a seamless broadcast for boxing fans worldwide.
- On Friday, we’re also up in Reno, Nevada, at the Grand Theatre in Grand Sierra Resort, where the WBO No. 1 ranked lightweight Ray Beltrán faces WBO No. 2 ranked lightweight Paulus Moses for the vacant lightweight world title and Moses’s first appearance in North America. Also on the main card is an eight-round featherweight bout between Shakur Stevenson and Juan Tapia, as well as Egidijus Kavaliauskas vs. David Avanesyan in a 10-round welterweight match-up. Matt Huennekens is there for the domestic transmission on ESPN, and Larry Sheets is there for the international distribution. Senior project manager David Gallardo will be right alongside the guys in the CK35 mobile teleport, calling broadcasters around the world to confirm they’re receiving our signal.
We’ve got plenty of excitement this week, and there’s plenty more on the horizon!