ESPN's Men's Final Four Coverage from Atlanta
Tom Izzo & Shaka Smart Guest Analysts
ESPN will provide extensive NCAA Men's Final Four analysis, news and interviews from Atlanta, site of the championship, across multiple shows and platforms Thursday, April 4, to Monday, April 8. Shows and segments will originate from the Central Park area of the Atlantic Station shopping center with reports coming from the Georgia Dome, site of the Final Four games.
Content from Atlanta will be highlighted by daily SportsCenter segments Thursday, April 4, to Monday, April 8; a three-hour College GameDay Covered by State Farm before the semifinals on ESPN (Saturday, April 6, at 3 p.m. ET) and a two-hour edition prior to the championship on ESPN2 (Monday, April 8, at 7 p.m.); and a SportsCenter special between the semifinal games Saturday, April 8, at 8 p.m. ESPN will also provide extensive post-game coverage for the semifinals and title game.
Michigan State coach Tom Izzo and Virginia Commonwealth coach Shaka Smart will join the set to provide analysis across various ESPN shows from Atlanta on Saturday.
ESPN will have at least 12 hosts, analysts and reporters in Atlanta for the five days of coverage: John Anderson, Jay Bilas, Rece Davis, Jeannine Edwards, Seth Greenberg, Andy Katz, Bob Knight, Brad Nessler, Digger Phelps, Jalen Rose, Dick Vitale and Jay Williams.
SportsCenter
ESPN's men's college basketball studio host Rece Davis and SportsCenter anchor John Anderson will share hosting duties. Dick Vitale, Jay Bilas, Digger Phelps, Seth Greenberg, Jay Williams, Bob Knight and Jalen Rose will provide analysis. ESPN.com senior writer Andy Katz and reporter Jeannine Edwards will provide news and updates from Atlanta.
College GameDay
ESPN will televise two day-of-game editions of College GameDay: a three-hour show Saturday, April 6, at 3 p.m. previewing the National Semifinal matchups and a two-hour Championship preview Monday, April 8, at 7 p.m. Davis and Anderson will host the programs with analysis from Vitale, Bilas, Phelps, Greenberg, Knight and Williams. Katz and Edwards will provide reports.
Saturday's show will include a feature on the 75th anniversary of the NCAA Tournament. The segment will provide an oral history of the still-growing phenomenon from former players and coaches such as Bob Knight, Bo Kimble and Harry Flournoy. The Monday edition of College GameDay will include a segment on buzzer beater shots. As dramatic as the shot can be, it is often a set play that has been designed, diagrammed and practiced. The feature includes appearances by Jim Calhoun, Homer and Bruce Drew, Tyus Edney, Christian Laettner, Grant Hill, Dereck Whittenberg and Thurl Bailey.
ESPNU
ESPNU will provide extensive coverage as part of its Tournament Countdown programming on Monday, April 8:
· A Tournament Countdown: The Experts show at 1 p.m. will include a panel of ESPN analysts reviewing the National Semifinals and previewing the National Championship. Panelists include Katz, Williams, Greenberg and Rose.
· A special Tournament Countdown: Katz Korner will air live from Atlanta at 3 p.m.
· Back-to-back 30-minute editions of Tournament Countdown: Road to the Championship will highlight the journey of the teams to the National Championship at 4 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
· A special two-hour Tournament Countdown: College Basketball Live will air at 5 p.m.
ESPN.com and ESPN Mobile
ESPN.com will have complete Final Four coverage from its lineup of experts and analysts, including Eamonn Brennan, Andy Katz, Myron Medcalf, Dana O'Neil, and Robbi Pickeral. ESPN Mobile will also carry coverage from writers and analysts, keeping fans up to date on the latest news and highlights on mobile devices via a special section on ESPN mobile Web. Fans can sign up for ESPN Alerts to receive real-time information on the game (scores, starts, etc.), breaking news and more. Additionally, fans won't be far from checking the latest news and their brackets while on the go with the 2013 updated ESPN Bracket Bound free app available in the App Store and Android Market.
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