Mike Pesca

Credit David Banks

Mike Pesca first reached the airwaves as a 10-year-old caller to a New York Jets-themed radio show and has since been able to parlay his interests in sports coverage as a National Desk correspondent  for NPR based in New York City.

Pesca enjoys training his microphone on anything that occurs at a track, arena, stadium, park, fronton, velodrome or air strip (i.e. the plane drag during the World's Strongest Man competition). He has reported from Los Angeles, Cleveland and Gary. He has also interviewed former Los Angeles Ram Cleveland Gary. Pesca is a panelist on the weekly Slate podcast “Hang up and Listen”.

In 1997, Pesca began his work in radio as a producer at WNYC. He worked on the NPR and WNYC program On The Media. Later he became the New York correspondent for NPR's midday newsmagazine Day to Day, a job that has brought him to the campaign trail, political conventions, hurricane zones and the Manolo Blahnik shoe sale. Pesca was the first NPR reporter to have his own podcast, a weekly look at gambling cleverly titled “On Gambling with Mike Pesca.”

Pesca, whose writing has appeared in Slate and The Washington Post, is the winner of two Edward R. Murrow awards for radio reporting and, in1993, was named Emory University Softball Official of the Year.

He lives in Manhattan with his wife Robin, sons Milo and Emmett and their dog Rumsfeld. A believer in full disclosure, Pesca rates his favorite teams as the Jets, Mets, St. Johns Red Storm and Knicks, teams he has covered fairly and without favor despite the fact that they have given him a combined one championship during his lifetime as a fully cognizant human.

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Sports
5:14 am
Wed June 19, 2013

Miami Heat Force Game 7 In NBA Finals

Originally published on Wed June 19, 2013 6:08 am

The Miami Heat avoided elimination Tuesday night by beating the San Antonio Spurs in overtime, 103 to 100. LeBron James shrugged off a poor start to get 32 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds. Ray Allen hit a 3-pointer with 5.2 seconds to play to force overtime.

Sports
4:30 am
Mon June 10, 2013

Heat Breaks Away From Spurs To Win Game 2

Originally published on Mon June 10, 2013 7:08 am

The series is tied at one game a piece. The Miami Heat beat the San Antonio Spurs Sunday night 103-84. Last week, the Spurs beat the Heat in the opener.

Sports
5:30 am
Tue June 4, 2013

After Game 7: Pacers Go Home, Heat Face Spurs

Originally published on Tue June 4, 2013 8:10 am

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

The Miami Heat were dominant last night as they beat the Indiana Pacers to win Game 7 of the NBA's Eastern Conference Finals. NPR's Mike Pesca reports that Miami's LeBron James led all scorers with 32 points and his team to another berth in the Finals.

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Sports
5:54 am
Mon June 3, 2013

3 Fresh Faces Usher In New WNBA Season

Originally published on Mon June 3, 2013 10:23 am

Transcript

LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST:

The women's pro basketball season is underway, and this year the WBNA features three former college stars. These standout players are being marketed as the Three To See. They are Elena Della Donne, Brittney Griner, and Skylar Diggins. NPR's Mike Pesca saw two of the three to see play each other last night. He has this report.

MIKE PESCA, BYLINE: Skylar Diggins can still get the crowd to go wild.

(SOUNDBITE OF CHEERS)

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Sports
4:24 am
Thu May 16, 2013

Wrestlers Grapple To Save Sport From Olympic Chopping Block

Originally published on Thu May 16, 2013 2:11 pm

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

How often do you find Iran, Russia and the United States united behind a single message? Well, representatives from all three countries were in New York City yesterday rallying support for the sport of wrestling, which could be excluded from the upcoming Olympic Games. It was quite a show of sportsmanship and diplomacy. Of course, there was time for some conflict among the wrestlers. It took place at New York's Grand Central Terminal, that's why they called it the Rumble on the Rails.

Here's NPR's Mike Pesca.

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Sports
5:11 am
Tue May 7, 2013

Broadcast Sports Pioneer Bob Wolff Shares His Archive

Originally published on Tue May 7, 2013 11:04 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Sports caster Bob Wolff is said to be the only announcer to call a championship game in all four major sports. Wolff is rare among sportscasters, not just for his longevity, a record 74 years and counting, but also his commitment to posterity. He recorded many of his broadcasts and now he's donated this trove to the Library of Congress.

NPR's Mike Pesca talked to Wolff about his career and legacy.

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Sports
4:34 am
Tue April 9, 2013

Louisville Triumphs Over Michigan 82-76

Originally published on Tue April 9, 2013 9:14 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

On a Tuesday, it's MORNING EDITION from NPR News. Steve Inskeep is on a reporting trip this week in Venezuela. I'm David Greene in Washington.

The University of Louisville are the new champions of men's college basketball. They beat the University of Michigan Wolverines 82-to-76 last night in Atlanta. For the Cardinals, this victory was the finale to a post season that involved overcoming so many deficits.

Here's NPR's Mike Pesca.

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Sports
5:01 am
Mon April 8, 2013

Previewing Men's NCAA Basketball Championship

Originally published on Mon April 8, 2013 10:09 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

OK. People in Kentucky, don't call me a jinx, but there is the potential for some major celebrations in Louisville coming soon. Louisville is the school to beat in both the men's and women's college Division I basketball title games. The Lady Cardinals of Louisville will face Connecticut in the championship game Tuesday. We'll have more on that in a minute. First, it's Louisville against Michigan in tonight's men's final.

NPR's Mike Pesca reports from Atlanta, where some of the best seats don't always have the best view.

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Sports
6:53 am
Sat April 6, 2013

In The Zone, Syracuse Aims For NCAA Title

Credit Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP
Syracuse celebrates after the team's 55-39 win over Marquette, in Washington last Saturday.

Originally published on Sun April 7, 2013 11:08 am

Any recreational league basketball team, any police athletic league squad and every group of 8-year-olds who wear the same uniform are, on the first or second day of practice, introduced to the 2-3 zone defense.

The coach will say, "On defense, you two short guys stay near the foul line, and you three bigger kids, you go down near the basket. Put your hands up, and you're now playing the 2-3."

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Sports
6:40 am
Fri April 5, 2013

Why College Basketball Celebrates Final 4 Teams

Originally published on Fri April 5, 2013 12:33 pm

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

The NCAA men's basketball tournament resumes tomorrow. Louisville plays Wichita State and Syracuse faces Michigan. On the women's side, it's Louisville again. They're playing California. Notre Dame is playing Connecticut. These quartets of teams, of course, are known as the Final Four, and this stage in the tournament is a resume booster for teams and coaches. NPR's Mike Pesca ponders the question of why college basketball, unique among major team sports, celebrates the semi finalists.

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Sports
3:44 am
Thu March 28, 2013

Deflections: The Unofficial Stat That Measures Success

Credit Andy Lyons / Getty Images
Head coach Rick Pitino of the Louisville Cardinals is adamant about recording his team's deflections. It seems to be paying off: The Cardinals have been doing well during the NCAA tournament.

Originally published on Thu March 28, 2013 12:08 pm

The Louisville Cardinals are among the teams dominating at this year's men's Division 1 NCAA basketball tournament, which resumes Thursday night. The team credits harassing, active defense for its wins.

But there's something else at work, too: deflections. The team puts a lot of stock in them, though deflections aren't an officially tracked statistic.

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Sports
4:38 am
Fri March 22, 2013

March Madness Report From Lexington, Kentucky

Originally published on Fri March 22, 2013 10:55 am

Transcript

MIKE PESCA, BYLINE: And I'm Mike Pesca in Lexington, Kentucky where Marquette, Louisville, Butler and Colorado State all advanced. That was the big story for sure, but there was something else that had all the players talking. Other than the memories of a lifetime and the chance to keep living their dreams and all that, there was - as Jamil Wilson pointed out to this Marquette teammate Vander Blue - this amazing room they just walked by in the hallway.

JAMIL WILSON: It was, like, nuts. And me and Vander were, like, yo, we gotta see the locker room.

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Sports
5:01 pm
Fri March 1, 2013

Major League Soccer Finally On Solid Footing, But Hasn't Reached Big Time

Originally published on Fri March 1, 2013 8:01 pm

Transcript

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

The Major League Soccer season starts tomorrow. Superstar David Beckham is gone and there aren't any new teams to get excited about this year. But the MLS is on solid footing, and as NPR's Mike Pesca reports, the league has big ambitions.

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Sports
5:38 am
Mon February 25, 2013

Jimmie Johnson Wins Daytona 500 For 2nd Time

Originally published on Mon February 25, 2013 2:10 pm

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Jimmie Johnson won the Daytona 500 yesterday, only his second career victory. [POST-BROADCAST CORRECTION: It was his second win at Daytona.] And he made it past Danica Patrick, the first woman to ever win the pole position with the fastest qualifying time. She finished eighth. NPR's Mike Pesca was at the race.

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Around the Nation
4:20 pm
Mon February 18, 2013

Inside Brooklyn's New Barclays Center

Originally published on Tue February 19, 2013 11:18 am

Transcript

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Melissa Block.

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