Halloween GameDay TV Guide: WNBA Finals Game 7 and College Football Week 9

Halloween falls on a Saturday, and the sports calendar showed up in costume. The Brewers finished the World Series in five games on Wednesday, so the 8 p.m. FOX window is empty. In its place: the first Game 7 in WNBA Finals history, a full Week 9 college football slate, seven NBA games, and the busiest NHL Halloween schedule since 2015. All times below are Eastern. Every matchup links to its MyGameSim prediction.

If you are holding one remote, this is the path:

• Noon: No. 22 Arizona at No. 13 Texas Tech on ESPN is the ranked-on-ranked game. No. 5 Notre Dame vs. Navy on ABC is the national broadcast, from Foxborough.
• 3:30 p.m.: No. 17 Florida vs. No. 3 Georgia on ABC, in Atlanta. Keep No. 6 Utah at Cincinnati on ESPN at 3:45 if you want the game where the home team is the slight simulation favorite against a top-10 visitor.
• 7:30 p.m.: Start with No. 2 Ohio State at USC on NBC, or No. 1 Miami at North Carolina on ABC.
• 8 p.m.: Move to USA Network for WNBA Finals Game 7. The series is tied 3-3. Coverage starts at 7.
• 8:30 p.m.: Thunder at Rockets on NBA TV is the national basketball game under the Finals.

Noon: Notre Dame, Texas Tech, and a crowded undercard

ABC has the showcase, No. 5 Notre Dame against Navy at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough. MyGameSim likes Notre Dame by a workable margin: Notre Dame in 71% of simulations, 29.6-23.0. The better football at noon is on ESPN, where No. 22 Arizona visits No. 13 Texas Tech. Texas Tech is trying to steady itself after last week's loss at Cincinnati, and the simulation has the Red Raiders in 68% of sims. On FOX, No. 25 Wisconsin at Iowa is a one-score game in the model, Iowa by a nose.

12:30 p.m. and 12:45 p.m.

Big Ten Network adds Michigan at Rutgers at 12:30. At 12:45, SEC Network has the noon window's cleanest lean: Auburn at No. 12 Ole Miss, with Ole Miss in 72% of sims, 32.9-25.2. If Arizona-Texas Tech is not the game you wanted, this is the flip.

1 p.m. and 2 p.m.: early hockey, then TNT

The NHL's Halloween matinee starts while the noon football games are still in the second quarter. Blackhawks at Bruins is the loudest simulation on the board, Boston in 87% of sims, 5.0-2.2, on NESN and Chicago Sports Network. Blues at Red Wings is the other 1 p.m. game, a St. Louis lean. At 2 p.m., Oilers at Islanders is the hockey game to add, and TNT has Kansas State at Colorado.

3 p.m.: the NBA starts, then the afternoon football window

Portland at Utah is an early NBA tip, 3 p.m. at Delta Center, on local TV and NBA League Pass. MyGameSim has the Trail Blazers in 69% of sims, 120.2-112.4. Three college games kick at the same time, all on streaming: UConn at Air Force is the strongest of them.

At 3:15, ACC Network has Stanford at Louisville. The simulation is about as lopsided as a college score gets: Louisville in 99% of sims, 51.6-15.9.

3:30 p.m.: Florida-Georgia, and the best window of the day

This is the game to build the afternoon around. No. 17 Florida and No. 3 Georgia meet in Atlanta, on ABC, each coming off a bye. MyGameSim has Georgia in 78% of simulations, 35.9-25.9. CBS has Minnesota at No. 4 Indiana at the same time, and that one is a heavier lean: Indiana in 92% of sims. FOX has Arizona State at No. 8 BYU, with BYU in 90% of sims. If you want a ranked road team in a tighter game, Peacock has No. 20 Northwestern at Oregon, Oregon in 71% of sims.

Two more NHL games drop at 4 p.m. under this window. Sabres at Kings is close. Senators at Sharks leans San Jose.

3:45 p.m.: Utah at Cincinnati

Stay flexible for 15 minutes. No. 6 Utah visits Cincinnati on ESPN, and Cincinnati is the team that just beat Texas Tech. MyGameSim gives the Bearcats a small home edge, 57% of sims, 34.1-31.5. That is the upset watch of the afternoon. ESPN2 has Virginia at No. 14 Wake Forest at the same time, a much stronger home lean.

4:15 p.m.

The 3:30 games will still be on. The new kicks are Nevada at No. 7 UCLA on Big Ten Network, which the simulation treats as a rout, plus South Carolina at Oklahoma on SEC Network and Purdue at Penn State on Big Ten Network. Oklahoma-South Carolina is the close one.

6 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.

NBA TV opens with 76ers at Hornets from Spectrum Center. Charlotte is a modest home lean, 60% of sims, 101.8-97.0. At 6:30, Appalachian State at Georgia Southern is on ESPN+ if the afternoon football window has gone stale.

7 p.m.: set the remote for prime time

Three college games and two hockey games start at 7, and WNBA Finals coverage begins on USA Network, CNBC, and Peacock. The football pick at the top of the hour is No. 24 Oklahoma State at Iowa State on FS1. The Cowboys are the road favorite in the simulation, 81% of sims, 39.2-28.1. Clemson at Florida State on ACC Network is the other football option, a Florida State lean.

On the ice, Penguins at Canadiens is the game with the widest Canadian audience, on Sportsnet and TVA Sports, with Montreal in 57% of sims. Maple Leafs at Canucks is Sportsnet-only in Canada and a strong Toronto lean, 80% of sims. There is no U.S. national broadcast for that one.

7:30 p.m.: No. 1 and No. 2, on different channels

You get both of the top two teams at the same minute. No. 2 Ohio State at USC is on NBC and Peacock. MyGameSim has Ohio State in 67% of sims, 32.7-27.1, close enough that USC is a real prime-time watch. No. 1 Miami is on ABC at North Carolina, in 84% of sims, 35.8-25.5. ESPN has Mississippi State at No. 11 Texas, a Texas lean. ESPN2 has Georgia Tech at Pitt.

Start on NBC or ABC. At 8 p.m., the Finals take the main screen.

8 p.m.: WNBA Finals Game 7

This is the night's main event. Atlanta visits Golden State at Chase Center with the series tied 3-3, the first Game 7 in WNBA Finals history. Both teams are chasing a first championship. Golden State won Games 1, 4, and 5. Atlanta won Games 2, 3, and 6, including an 80-69 win on Thursday that forced Saturday. Tip is 8 p.m. on USA Network and CNBC, with the stream on Peacock. Live coverage starts at 7.

MyGameSim has it as a slight home lean: Golden State in 53% of simulations, 84.0-82.6. Open the prediction again before tip so you are looking at the latest run.

Football does not stop. Washington at Nebraska is on Big Ten Network and Army at Memphis is on ESPNU, both kicking at 8. The NBA's 8 p.m. trio is on League Pass and local TV. Kings at Grizzlies is the strongest basketball lean of the night, Memphis in 83% of sims. Blue Jackets at Stars is the 8 p.m. hockey game, on Prime Video and the Columbus channels, and the simulation has it even.

8:30 p.m.: Thunder at Rockets

NBA TV's late national game