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SlamBall Comes to "One Tree Hill"

New Storyline Debuts on October 13, 2008, at 9 p.m. ET/PST

SlamBall, the new full-contact competition sport, will be part of an integral story arc on the hit CW series "One Tree Hill" beginning October 13.

The SlamBall episodes center on Nathan Scott (James Lafferty) who is drawn to the action-packed sport through a former friend who resurfaces in Tree Hill and encourages Nathan to try out. Recovering from an injury that derailed his shot at the NBA and wary of the physicality of the game, Nathan is assured by his friend he will be protected.

Nathan's natural basketball skills translate quickly to the sport, which is played on a combination of surfaces and includes elements of basketball, football, hockey, soccer and gymnastics. He makes an immediate impact on the Slashers team, but continues to struggle with a promise he made to his wife, Haley (Bethany Joy Galeotti), and their young son, Jamie (Jackson Brundage), that he would not risk his health again. Nathan struggles to keep his word to his family with his desire to reenter the athletic arena.

"One Tree Hill" was created by Mark Schwahn and is executive produced by Schwahn, Mike Tollin, Brian Robbins, Joe Davola and Greg Prange. "One Tree Hill" is produced by Mastermind Laboratories and Tollin/Robbins Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television.

Mike Tollin, an executive producer of "One Tree Hill" and a partner with IMG Sports Media in SlamBall via his Tollin Productions, commented, "The excitement and momentum around SlamBall continues to grow. This storyline on 'One Tree Hill' is a unique opportunity to combine the energy and enthusiasm surrounding the 2008 SlamBall season with one of television's most popular and longest-running dramas and impressive young actors."

Mason Gordon, the creator of SlamBall, said, "SlamBall is like a video game brought to life, and we are really excited for fans of 'One Tree Hill' to get acquainted with the game this season. James is not only a talented actor, but an amazing athlete and a natural SlamBall player. He is already playing the game at an advanced level."

SlamBall is a joint venture between IMG Sports Media, the sports production and distribution division of IMG Worldwide, and Tollin/Robbins Productions, an award-winning and highly acclaimed television and feature film production company. SlamBall operates under the leadership of Commissioner Pat Croce, the renowned sports entrepreneur and former owner of the Philadelphia 76ers.

The "2008 SlamBall Championship Series" title game will be broadcast exclusively on CBS Sports on Sunday, November 2, at 5 p.m. ET/PT. VERSUS, a national sports network available in more than 73 million homes, airs regular season SlamBall games on Sundays through October 26. A variety of interactive SlamBall content is available on Slamball.net and VERSUS.com.

Following the broadcast of the "2008 SlamBall Championship Series," SlamBall will return in 2009 with eight teams playing in cities across the United States.

About SlamBall

Created by sports entrepreneur Mason Gordon, SlamBall is the first action team sport, a full-contact competition played on a combination of surfaces that includes elements of basketball, football, hockey, soccer and gymnastics. The high-flying, hard-hitting action is often described as a video game brought to life.

SlamBall features two teams (playing four on four) engaged in 20-minute games (four, five-minute quarters). The playing surface is approximately the size of a regulation basketball court, with four springbeds built into the court around each 10-foot basket. The remainder of the court is fully shock absorbent and surrounded by 12-foot plexiglass walls that keep the ball in play at all times.

More information is available at: www.slamball.net.

About Mike Tollin and Tollin/Robbins Productions

Through Tollin/Robbins Productions (TRP), Mike Tollin has produced more than a dozen feature films and currently has two prime-time television series in production. He most recently produced "Wild Hogs," a comedy starring John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence and Bill Macy, which has grossed nearly $250 million at the box office; and "The Bronx is Burning," an eight-hour mini-series for ESPN about the 1977 Yankees, which was nominated for two SAG Awards, a DGA Award, and the PGA Producer of the Year Award.

Other films produced by TRP include "Coach Carter," "Dreamer," "Hardball," "Varsity Blues," "Summer Catch," "Big Fat Liar," and "Radio," which Tollin also directed. Tollin wrote, produced and directed the documentary "Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream," which won a Peabody Award and was nominated for an Academy Award®.

In television, Tollin has won three Emmy® Awards. He is executive producer of the CW's "Smallville" and "One Tree Hill." Tollin previously produced seven seasons of "Arli$$" for HBO; ABC's "I'm With Her" and "The Days"; "What I Like About You" for the WB, and several series for Nickelodeon, including "All That," "Kenan & Kel," "The Amanda Show," and "Sports Theatre with Shaquille O'Neal."

About IMG Sports Media

IMG Sports Media, the sports production and distribution division of IMG Worldwide, is the world's largest independent producer and distributor of sports programming, offering the market an extensive catalogue of more than 18,000 hours of television, online, mobile and radio sports content across 240 categories of sports, including golf, football (soccer), tennis, cricket, cycling, motor sports and mixed martial arts. IMG Sports Media also represents the broadcast rights to many of the world's premier sporting events and maintains the world's largest sports archive with more than 250,000 hours of footage.

More information is available at www.imgworld.com.