ABC orders back nine episodes of the 'Grey's Anatomy' spinoff

ABC has handed out its first back-nine order of the season, giving the go-ahead for more episodes of " Private Practice."

The "Grey's Anatomy" spinoff starring Kate Walsh will stick around for a full complement of 22 episodes, the showbiz trade papers say. It's the third sophomore show to be extended to a full season, after NBC's " Chuck" -- which got its back-nine order before the season started -- and FOX's " Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles."

Like both of those shows and pretty much every other series that had a longer-than-usual layoff because of the writers strike, "Private Practice" has struggled to regain the audience it had last season. Its first two episodes this fall have averaged 8.3 million viewers, more than 2 million viewers off its average for the 2007-08 season.

That audience has been good enough, however, to claim a solid second place in its Wednesday-night time period (behind CBS' " Criminal Minds"). It averages a 3.2 rating in the key adults 18-49 demographic, also second in its timeslot.

The pickup is something of a do-over for "Private Practice." ABC picked up a full season of the show last October, but the strike wiped out those plans. The network ordered 13 episodes to start this season.