CBSC broadcast misses first half

Viewers tuning in to the CBS College Sports Network to see a battle for first place in the Mountain West Conference on Wednesday night were treated to an amazing basketball game.

It just wasn't the one most of them were hoping to watch.

The network stayed with a four-overtime women's game between Utah and Texas Christian through its conclusion, which meant the men's game between 23rd-ranked UNLV and No. 15 New Mexico was not joined until the second half.

A representative for the Mountain West Conference said it was a network decision and that the league's attempts to reach someone at the network were unsuccessful. A call by the Las Vegas Review-Journal to a network representative was also not returned.

The CBS College Sports Network offices are located in New York, and the UNLV-New Mexico game began at 11 p.m. Eastern time.

UNLV senior associate athletic director Jerry Koloskie said he was aware of the situation but that it was out of the school's hands.

"Obviously, we don't have any control of that aspect of the television package," he said. "We'd like all of our games to be shown in their entirety, but from what I understand, there was a (four)-overtime game, and that's beyond our control."

Koloskie said the school sympathizes with those who missed half of one of the most important games of the season.

"Certainly our fans are upset, and we understand that," he said.

The UNLV game was joined in progress at 9:03 p.m., more than an hour after its scheduled start time. The Rebels faced a 40-28 halftime deficit at the time.

The Mountain West Conference entered into an exclusive agreement in 2004 with College Sports Television, which in turn launched The Mtn. sports network. CSTV was rebranded CBS College Sports Network in 2008.

League commissioner Craig Thompson said this week that the television deal was a major factor in three teams from the Mountain West being ranked at the same time.

Fans should not be worried about a similar conundrum arising for UNLV's next game.

The Rebels' matchup with San Diego State will air on Versus (Cable 38) at 1 p.m. Saturday, almost certainly in its entirety. The broadcast is scheduled to be preceded by a repeat episode of "Sports Jobs with Junior Seau." The episode was taped months ago and will not go into overtime.

CBSC (Cox Digitial 333) is scheduled to replay the New Mexico-UNLV game at 11:30 a.m. today.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509.