It’s been an active few weeks for the St. Bonaventure basketball program. That’s not a sentence that’s usually written in October but it’s true.
Thursday, the Bonnies announced an agreement that will see nine men’s and women’s basketball games air on YES Network, the regional sports network majority owned by the Steinbrenner family. Five St. Bonaventure men’s games and four women’s contests will air on YES Network and be streamed on the Gotham Sports App this season.
“This is such an important partnership for our institution and our Athletic Department,” St. Bonaventure Vice President and Director of Athletics Bob Beretta said in a press release. “We are thrilled to showcase Bona Basketball on the nation’s top regional sports network. To be connected with the New York Yankees, a premier global brand, is something we’re very excited about.
The announcement comes on the heels of another high-profile story involving the Bonnies. Just last month, ESPN’s lead NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski left a reported $20 million on the table to become the General Manager for the St. Bonaventure men’s basketball program.
As for YES Network, the fit makes a lot of sense. St. Bonaventure plays plenty of non-conference opponents located in New York state. On the men’s side, the Bonnies will play in-state rivals Le Moyne and Buffalo on YES. And on the women’s side, non-conference tilts against Cornell and Niagara highlight the regional nature of the deal.
Notably, St. Bonaventure’s deal with YES Network is in addition to the Atlantic 10 Conference’s deal with ESPN. Per the release, all games set to air on YES will still air on ESPN+.