TBS to Air Final Four® for First Time;
Network’s Live On-Site Pregame Coverage Extended to Three Hours
CBS Sports’ Broadcast of National Championship to Include Extended Pre-Game Show
at 8:30 p.m. ET; Game to Tip-Off at 9:10 p.m.
TNT & truTV to Present “Teamcasts” of Final Four National Semifinals Games
CBS and TBS to Split Coverage of Regional Finals
For the fourth consecutive year, Turner Sports and CBS Sports will provide live coverage of all 67 games from the 2014 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship across four national television networks – TBS, CBS, TNT and truTV. The 2014 schedule will feature several changes to the networks’ collective coverage, highlighted by innovative enhancements to the Final Four® and National Championship.
CBS will broadcast the National Championship game for the 33rd consecutive year on Monday, April 7, from AT&T Stadium in North Texas. For the first time, the coverage will include an extended pre-game show, Capital One Championship Central, from 8:30-9 p.m. ET. The National Championship game will tip off earlier this year, with the game scheduled to start at 9:10 p.m.
TBS will exclusively televise the 2014 NCAA Final Four on Saturday, April 5, with live game action beginning at 6 p.m. from AT&T Stadium in North Texas, marking the first time in the event’s history the National Semifinal games will be televised on a cable network.
Additionally, Turner Sports and CBS will showcase for the first time Final Four games live across three networks – TBS, TNT and truTV. The NCAA Final Four “Teamcast,” will feature team-specific telecasts that will air live on TNT and truTV. The “Teamcast” productions will be tailored specifically to the teams competing to provide fans with a variety of viewing options for this year’s marquee event.
Live on-site Final Four studio coverage airing on TBS has been expanded an hour earlier with Road to the Final Four airing Saturday, April 5, from 3-4 p.m., followed by the Final Four Show from 4-6 p.m. The telecasts of the two National Semifinal games begin at 6 p.m. on TBS.
Coverage of the Regional Finals games this year will be split by CBS and TBS, with TBS airing the games on Saturday, March 29, beginning at 6 p.m. and CBS airing the games on Sunday, March 30, starting at 2 p.m.
The 2014 Division I Men’s Basketball Championship will tip off in primetime with the NCAA First Four™ on truTV presented by Northwestern Mutual on Tuesday, March 18, and Wednesday, March 19, with coverage beginning at 6 p.m. both nights.
Additional highlights include (complete telecast schedule attached):
· CBS will broadcast 22 games throughout the tournament including the National Championship, Elite 8®, Sweet 16® and second and third rounds.
· Turner will air 47 game telecasts across its three networks (TBS, TNT and truTV).
· TBS will televise 20 contests including the Final Four, Elite 8, Sweet 16 and games in the second and third rounds.
· truTV, including the First Four™, will air a total of 14 games also spanning the second and third rounds, along with the Final Four teamcast.
· TNT will televise 13 games including second and third round match ups, along with the Final Four teamcast.
CBS Sports and Turner Sports will again present integrated game and studio productions across the four networks with pregame, halftime, bridge and post-game shows from studios in New York City and Atlanta. Studio shows include The Road to the Final Four® and Infiniti NCAA Tip-Off pre-game shows, AT&T at the Half, Capital One Tournament Central and the Inside March Madness® presented by Buick post-game show.
Follow us on Twitter: @MarchMadnessTV for schedule updates and the latest NCAA Tournament broadcast news and information.
NCAA, March Madness, Elite 8, Sweet 16, First Four, Final Four and Road to the Final Four are trademarks owned or licensed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
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