October 21, 2026
Extensive Pre- and Post-Game Studio Coverage Features On-Site Team of Elle Duncan (host) and Renee Montgomery (analyst) from State Farm Arena, with Host Paris Lawson and Analysts Chamique Holdsclaw and Teresa Weatherspoon In-Studio
2026 WNBA Champion Will be Crowned on USA Sports! Up to Four More WNBA Finals Games (Games 3 and 5, 6-7 If Necessary) Live on USA Network with Live Simulcasts on CNBC
STAMFORD, Conn. – Oct. 21, 2026 – USA Sports’ coverage of the 2026 WNBA Finals continues tonight as Angel Reese and the Atlanta Dream host Gabby Williams and the Golden State Valkyries in a pivotal Game 3 matchup at 8 p.m. ET on USA Network and CNBC, with pregame coverage beginning at 7 p.m. ET.
Behind Reese’s 30-point, 16-rebound double-double, the Dream bounced back from a Game 1 loss to top the Valkyries, 79-65, on Monday and tie the series at 1-1. Reese became the youngest player in WNBA history to record 30 points and 15 rebounds in a playoff game.
Kate Scott (play-by-play), analysts Tamika Catchings and Amy Audibert, and courtside reporter Meghan McPeak will call Game 3 live from State Farm Arena in Atlanta tonight.
USA Sports surrounds the WNBA Finals with hour-long pregame shows and extended postgame coverage. Pregame, halftime and postgame coverage, beginning tonight at 7 p.m. ET, features Elle Duncan (host) and Renee Montgomery (analyst) anchoring coverage from State Farm Arena, with host Paris Lawson alongside analysts and Naismith Basketball Hall of Famers Chamique Holdsclaw and Teresa Weatherspoon in-studio. Veteran WNBA Finals referee and the WNBA’s current Referee Performance & Development Advisor Kurt Walker serves as USA Sports’ rules analyst.
With the series tied 1-1, the 2026 WNBA champions will be crowned on USA Sports as up to four more WNBA Finals games - Games 3 and 5 and 6-7 (if necessary) – will air live on USA Network.
All of USA Sports’ WNBA Finals coverage on USA Network will simulcast live on CNBC. Throughout the regular season, CNBC’s game simulcasts introduced 1 million new viewers to the WNBA.
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USA SPORTS’ 2026 WNBA FINALS SCHEDULE | ||||
|
DATE |
GAME |
PREGAME (ET) |
TIP TIME (ET) |
NETWORK |
|
TONIGHT | WNBA Finals Game 3 |
7 p.m. |
8 p.m. |
USA Network/CNBC |
|
Mon., October 26 | WNBA Finals Game 5 |
7 p.m. |
8 p.m. |
USA Network/CNBC |
|
Thurs., October 29 | WNBA Finals Game 6* |
7 p.m. |
8 p.m. |
USA Network/CNBC |
|
Sat., October 31 | WNBA Finals Game 7* |
7 p.m. |
8 p.m. |
USA Network/CNBC |
|
*if necessary | ||||
All games throughout the WNBA Finals will also stream live on Peacock. NBC Sports will present Game 4 on October 24 on NBC and Peacock.
USA Sports presented three First Round WNBA Playoffs games, with coverage of the Las Vegas Aces’ 94-83 Game 3 win over the Indiana Fever averaging 2.3 million viewers across USA Network and CNBC to rank as the second most-watched First Round game in WNBA history. Click here for more.
Last year, USA Sports and the WNBA announced an 11-year media rights agreement for USA Network to present WNBA games – including the regular-season and portions of the Playoffs and WNBA Finals in select years – beginning with the 2026 season.
As part of the multi-year agreement which runs through 2036, USA Sports will present at least 50 WNBA games annually on USA Network, including coverage of the WNBA Playoffs presented by Google Pixel and WNBA Finals games in select years beginning this year.
About USA Sports
USA Sports is home to premier sporting events across USA Network, Golf Channel, CNBC, and Fandango, throughout the calendar year, including NASCAR, PGA TOUR, Premier League, Bundesliga, WWE, WNBA, Pac-12 Football and Basketball, USGA, R&A, LPGA Tour, PGA of America, Atlantic 10 Basketball, DP World Tour, Augusta National, League One Volleyball (LOVB), and more. Golf Channel – the first-ever single-sport cable network which was founded in 1995 – delivers comprehensive live golf tournament, studio and shoulder programming and is the television home of the sport and industry in the United States. USA Sports is a division of Versant (Nasdaq: VSNT), an industry-changing media and entertainment business with a powerful portfolio of iconic and innovative brands, including USA Network, CNBC, MS NOW, Oxygen, E!, SYFY and Golf Channel, along with digital assets Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, GolfNow, GolfPass, and Full Swing.
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