WNBA PLAYOFFS RETURN TO NBC SPORTS FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2002! POSTSEASON COVERAGE BEGINS TOMORROW, OCT. 4, AT 4 P.M. ET ON NBC AND PEACOCK

Zora Stephenson (Play-by-Play), Sarah Kustok (Analyst), and Ashley ShahAhmadi (Courtside Reporter) to Call all of NBC Sports' WNBA Playoff Games, Beginning with Game 1 of No. 2 Golden State Valkyries vs. No. 3 Las Vegas Aces Tomorrow at 4 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock

WNBA Showtime Studio Coverage Throughout Playoffs to Feature Sue Bird and Cheryl Miller as Analysts, with Contributions from Tina Charles, and Maria Taylor and LaChina Robinson as Hosts

WNBA Showtime Pre-Game Coverage Begins at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock

NBC Sports Scheduled to Present Valkyries-Aces Semifinals Series Games 1 and 4 on NBC/Peacock, Games 2-3 and 5 on Peacock/NBCSN; and WNBA Finals Games 1 and 4 on NBC/Peacock

STAMFORD, Conn. - Oct. 3, 2026 - The WNBA Playoffs return to NBC Sports for the first time since 2002 beginning tomorrow, Sunday, Oct. 4, with a star-studded WNBA Semifinals series featuring four-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson and the defending champion No. 3 seed Las Vegas Aces visiting two-time WNBA All-Star Gabby Williams and the No. 2 seed Golden State Valkyries in Game 1 of the Semifinals at 4 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock. NBC Sports will present up to seven games of live coverage throughout the Semifinals and WNBA Finals.

Zora Stephenson (play-by-play), former DePaul basketball player Sarah Kustok (analyst), and Ashley ShahAhmadi (courtside reporter) will call every WNBA Playoffs and Finals games for NBC Sports. Across the Playoffs, WNBA Showtime studio coverage will feature Naismith Basketball Hall of Famers Sue Bird and Cheryl Miller and contributions from eight-time WNBA All-Star Tina Charles, with Maria Taylor and LaChina Robinson as studio hosts.

NBC Sports will present up to five WNBA Semifinals games and two WNBA Finals games. For the Semifinals, Games 1 and 4 will be on NBC and Peacock while Games 2, 3 and 5 will be on Peacock and NBCSN. For the Finals, Games 1 and 4 will be on NBC and Peacock. Games 2-3 and 5-7 will see Peacock simulstream USA Network's coverage produced by Versant's USA Sports.

NBC SPORTS' WNBA PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE

Date Game Time (ET) Platforms
Sun., Oct. 4 Game 1: Aces at Valkyries 4 p.m. NBC, Peacock
Wed., Oct. 7 Game 2: Aces at Valkyries 9:30 p.m. Peacock, NBCSN
Fri., Oct. 9 Game 3: Valkyries at Aces 9:30 p.m. Peacock, NBCSN
Sun., Oct. 11 Game 4: Valkyries at Aces* TBD NBC, Peacock
Wed., Oct. 14 Game 5: Aces at Valkyries* TBD Peacock, NBCSN
Sat., Oct. 17 Game 1: WNBA Finals 3:30 p.m. NBC, Peacock
Sat., Oct. 24 Game 4: WNBA Finals 3:30 p.m. NBC, Peacock
*If necessary

ACES-VALKYRIES

Three-time WNBA champion A'ja Wilson and the defending champion No. 3 seed Las Vegas Aces visit two-time WNBA All-Star Gabby Williams and the No. 2 seed Golden State Valkyries this Sunday at 4 p.m. ET from Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on NBC and Peacock. Pre-game coverage begins with WNBA Showtime at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.

This will be the first playoff game for either of these teams on NBC, with the Aces moving to Las Vegas in 2018 and the Valkyries only in their second season as a franchise. In the First Round of the Playoffs, Las Vegas defeated Caitlin Clark and the No. 6 Indiana Fever 2-1, with Wilson scoring a game-high 36 points in Thursday's winner-take-all Game 3. Overcoming a 16-point deficit, Golden State went on to beat the No. 7 Dallas Wings in Friday's Game 3, with Gabby Williams leading the way, tallying 19 points and 4 rebounds. This is Golden State's first playoff series win as a franchise.

NBC Sports' Zora Stephenson (play-by-play), former DePaul basketball player Sarah Kustok (analyst), and Ashley ShahAhmadi (courtside reporter) will call Game 1 of Aces-Valkyries.

Live coverage on Sunday begins at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock with WNBA Showtime, hosted by LaChina Robinson alongside Naismith Basketball Hall of Famers Sue Bird and Cheryl Miller.

WNBA FINALS

As previously announced, NBC Sports will present live coverage of Games 1 and 4 of the WNBA Finals on Saturday, Oct. 17, and Saturday, Oct. 24, respectively, with both games at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock. This will be the first WNBA Finals that NBC Sports will present since 2002, when the Los Angeles Sparks swept the New York Liberty.

Zora Stephenson (play-by-play), Sarah Kustok (analyst), and Ashley ShahAhmadi (courtside reporter) will call Games 1 and 4 of the WNBA Finals, marking the first time each of them has called a WNBA Finals game.

REGULAR-SEASON VIEWERSHIP

NBC Sports had a triumphant return to the WNBA regular season, averaging a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 1.8 million viewers for its seven games on NBC and Peacock, up 35% vs. comparable coverage last season.

Additional highlights include:

· NBC Sports' primetime presentation of the Indiana Fever-Chicago Sky Sunday Night Basketball game on Aug. 23 averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 3.31 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, making it the most-watched WNBA regular-season game since the opening weekend of league's inaugural 1997 season and the third most-watched WNBA regular-season game ever, based on official Nielsen Big Data + Panel and digital data from Adobe Analytics.

· NBC Sports' primetime presentation of the Indiana Fever-Las Vegas Aces Sunday Night Basketball game on July 12 averaged a TAD of 2.64 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, which was the second most-watched WNBA game of the regular season.

***

NBC's coverage of the WNBA is led by coordinating producer Betsy Riley and director Jenny Glazer. Sam Flood is Executive Producer & President, NBC Sports Production.

WNBA Showtime, NBC Sports' studio program, serves as the pre-, post-, and bridge show for both WNBA Gametime and Sunday Night Basketball. The coordinating producer of WNBA Showtime is Alexa Maremaa. WNBA Showtime is directed by Kelly Atkinson.

***

ABOUT NBC SPORTS

NBC Sports connects sports fans to the moments that matter most with premier live events, insightful studio shows, and compelling original programming. As the sports division of NBCUniversal, NBC Sports produces, programs, and promotes premier content across numerous linear and digital platforms, including NBC and Peacock. NBC Sports presents events from many of the world's most prestigious properties, including the International Olympic Committee, International Paralympic Committee, United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, the NFL, NBA, WNBA, Major League Baseball, Notre Dame, Big Ten Conference, Big East Conference, Big 12 Conference, PGA TOUR, USGA, PGA of America, The R&A, Churchill Downs, Premier League, and many more. It is renowned for making big events bigger and has produced some of the most-watched sporting events in U.S. media history, including Olympic Games, Super Bowls, and Sunday Night Football, primetime television's No. 1 show for 15 consecutive years.

--WNBA ON NBC AND PEACOCK--