Christine Williamson to lead ESPN’s women’s basketball coverage, replacing Elle Duncan – The Athletic

Christine Williamson has been with ESPN since 2019. Bryan Steffy / Getty Images

Christine Williamson will be the lead host for ESPN’s women’s basketball coverage and succeed Elle Duncan, the network announced Thursday.

Williamson will also anchor the 6 p.m. ET “SportsCenter” show alongside Kevin Negandhi. Williamson will immediately slide into her new role, hosting pregame and halftime coverage of the Dec. 14 matchup between Penn State and No. 3 South Carolina on ESPN. Beginning in January, Williamson will host the “Women’s College Gameday” show and share the “SportsCenter” desk with Negandhi. Williamson will anchor ESPN’s coverage of the 2026 NCAA Women’s Final Four in April.

“Christine has earned these high-profile roles on two of our most important content areas — ‘SportsCenter’ and women’s college basketball,” ESPN president of content Burke Magnus said in a news release. “Christine connects with fans through her energy, personality and knowledge of sports, and she’s proven throughout her ESPN career that she can anchor coverage at the highest level — both on ‘SportsCenter’ and on the road with ‘GameDay.’”

The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand reported in late November that Duncan was departing ESPN for Netflix to help lead its expanding sports coverage. Duncan is permitted to appear on networks or platforms under her new deal. Netflix has the rights to Christmas Day NFL games and three MLB games, among other sporting events.

ESPN initially hired Williamson in 2019 as a digital host. She has been anchoring the 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. ET episodes of “SportsCenter” with Matt Barrie, while also co-hosting “Countdown to College Gameday,” a Saturday digital show during college football season.

Williamson is a former college volleyball player at the University of Miami.