‘ABL Friday Basketball’ on ESPN STAR Sports tips off

SINGAPORE --  The action-packed ASEAN Basketball League’s regular season tips off on ‘ABL Friday Basketball’ this Friday, 11 January 2013 on Asia’s leading sports content provider ESPN STAR Sports (ESS).

Starting with the season’s first game, the much-anticipated clash between the Indonesia Warriors and San Miguel Beermen from the Philippines live at 8pm (HKT), ESS’s coverage of the 2013 season will include more than 30 regular and post-season games with dedicated coverage every Friday night from 11th Jan to 19th May 2013 on its new “ABL Friday Night Basketball” time slot.

In addition to the LIVE broadcast on ESPN, this season onwards for the very first time, basketball fans will be able to watch matches across multiple platforms including the broadband network ESPN Player* and Mobile ESPN**. The ABL will also enjoy additional news coverage on SportsCenter, Score Tonight and on the 24-hour sports news channel, ESPNEWS.

Fans can also look forward to additional programming during the season that includes the weekly show ‘ABL Crossover’; providing a behind-the-scenes, off-court and lifestyle perspective of the league, as well as news and interviews with ABL personalities across the region.

Said Peter Hutton, Managing Director, ESPN STAR Sports, “We're very happy to support the start of ABL Friday Basketball, and make this a regular habit for basketball fans throughout the region.”

“ABL Friday Night Basketball is part of the League’s commitment to fans in making more games accessible,” adds Anthony Macri, Chief Executive Officer of the ASEAN Basketball League. “This additional coverage provides fans the opportunity to more closely follow and support their favourite teams.”

With three different winners in three years, this year’s season promises to be another highly-contested affair. The Warriors are looking to become the league’s first back-to-back champions, but are likely to face strong competition from the San Miguel Beerman, as well as former champions Chang Thailand Slammers.

All of the teams have boosted their rosters in the off-season. Last season’s Playoffs contender the Westports Malaysia Dragons have added former Atlanta Hawks Cedric Bozeman into their line-up. The Jobstreet.com Singapore Slingers have recruited former NCAA rebound leader Rashad Jones-Jennings while last season’s surprise package the Saigon Heat’s new imports appear to be gelling well together as they swept a two-game series against the Chinese Basketball League’s Sichuan Blue Whales in their pre-season games.

Meanwhile, the Chang Thailand Slammers, with head coach Joe “Jellybean” Bryant will be looking to prove that they deserve a place back in the finals. After a disappointing end to last season’s crash out before the semi-final stage, the former NBA professional and father of NBA’s biggest superstar, Kobe Bryant, will be looking to lift the Chang Thailand Slammers to greater heights against the defending champions on 15 February 2013 live at 8pm on ESPN.