The new way to mark the opening of the season will begin at 11:00 p.m. CT with a tripleheader of live games: Massachusetts at Memphis, followed by Fresno State at Saint Mary’s at 1 a.m., with Idaho State at Hawaii at 3 a.m.
ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU will offer 33 total hours of coverage overall highlighted by 14 game telecasts, including defending-National Champion Kansas on ESPNU at 8 p.m. CT. ESPN360.com will offer a simulcast of every ESPN and ESPN2 telecast.
Coverage will include the College Hoops Tip-Off Special, a live four-hour studio show originating from ESPN’s studios in Charlotte, N.C., beginning at 5 a.m. In addition to the College Hoops Tip-Off Marathon coverageon ESPN, ESPN2 will televise a tripleheader of 2008 NIT Season Tip-Off match-ups, including Oklahoma’s game at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman. ESPNU will offer a doubleheader beginning with a NIT Season Tip-off game at 6 p.m. followed by a CBE Classic game at 8 p.m. featuring defending National Champion Kansas.
College Hoops Tip-Off Marathon Schedule for ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU (Times Central)
| 11 p.m. CT | ESPN/ESPN360.com | Massachusetts at Memphis |
| 1 a.m. | ESPN/ESPN360.com | Fresno State at St. Mary’s |
| 3 a.m. | ESPN/ESPN360.com | Idaho State at Hawaii |
| 5a.m. | ESPN | College Hoops Tip-Off Special |
| 9 a.m. | ESPN/ESPN360.com | Penn at Drexel |
| 11 a.m. | ESPN/ESPN360.com | Liberty at UNC-Asheville |
| 1 p.m. | ESPN/ESPN360.com | Iowa at Kansas (women) |
| 3 p.m. | ESPN/ESPN360.com | Centenary at Baylor |
| 5 p.m. | ESPN/ESPN360.com | CBE Classic: Richmond at Syracuse |
| 6 p.m. | ESPNU | NIT Regional Final (from Purdue) |
| 6:30 p.m. | ESPN2/ESPN360.com | NIT Regional Final(from Boston College) |
| 7 p.m. | ESPN | College GameDay (from Chapel Hill) |
| 8 p.m. | ESPN/ESPN360.com | Kentucky at North Carolina |
| 8 p.m. | ESPNU | CBE Classic: Florida Gulf Coast at Kansas |
| 8:30 p.m. | ESPN2/ESPN360.com | NIT Regional Final (from Oklahoma) |
| 10:30 p.m. | ESPN2/ESPN360.com | NIT Regional Final (from Arizona) |
