Ms. Gifford and Ms. Kotb, of course, are known to share a drink on the air on a regular basis, perhaps making their show well-suited for a repeat after last call.

Actually, it had nothing to do with alcohol and everything to do with NBC’s sudden need to fill an overnight time slot vacated by “Poker After Dark.” That program was removed from the schedule on a Friday at the end of September, days after federal prosecutors accused the program’s sponsor, Full Tilt Poker, of defrauding customers.

NBC slid Ms. Gifford and Ms. Kotb into the time slot the following Monday.

The repeat is a testament to NBC’s dependence on “Today” — already four hours each weekday — and to the endurance of the top-rated morning show. With the 2 a.m. repeat, “Today” now makes up fully 20 percent of NBC’s weekday schedule.

For NBC News, which produces “Today,” the repeat is an opportunity to have the fourth hour of the show sampled by an audience that may not be awake or home at 10 a.m.

Tammy Filler, a senior producer for “Today” who is in charge of the fourth hour, said she pictured some of the viewers as “late shift workers, insomniacs and parents up late with their babies.”

“You need a lot of laughter if you are watching TV at that hour, and that is something Kathie Lee and Hoda can deliver,” she said.

During the week of Nov. 7, the most recent week of available ratings, the 2 a.m. repeat had a surprisingly healthy average viewership of around 683,000 (on top of the 2.3 million the show averages in the morning).

The repeat gives NBC a bit of extra advertising inventory, as well: the five-minute-long break for local news that takes place about 10:25 a.m. becomes a five-minute-long block of ads overnight.

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