The NCAA Tournament brackets have been filled, and we know who, where, and when #1 seeded Syracuse University is playing. But unless you’re planning a trip to Pittsburgh, how will you be able to see your beloved Orange?
SU’s first round game with UNC-Asheville is scheduled to tip off at approximately 3:05 p.m. eastern time on Thursday. The game will be broadcast live on truTV, with Kevin Harlan, Len Elmore, and Marty Snider providing commentary.
Harlan is a veteran NBA and college basketball play-by-play announcer, having started his career with the NBA’s Kansas City (now Sacramento) Kings in 1982. He is probably best known for his work on TNT calling national NBA games. He also has plenty of college experience, having worked on the local level for the University of Kansas (his alma mater) and the University of Missouri as well as the Final Four for Westwood One radio.
Elmore was an All-ACC and All-American forward and center for the Maryland Terrapins in the early 1970s and enjoyed an eight-year career in the NBA. He has provided analysis on college basketball games for CBS and ESPN for the last 13 years, with another short three year stint in the early 1990s before he embarked on a career as an attorney.
Snider has been a sports reporter since the early 1990s, specializing in auto racing. He joined Turner Sports in 1998, working on their NASCAR coverage. This makes him a curious choice to report on NCAA Tournament games, but it’s his second year in that capacity so I’m inclined to cut him some slack. He has also put in some time as a sideline reporter for NBA playoff coverage on TNT.
This is the second year of a 14-year, $10.8 billion partnership between Turner Sports and CBS to provide live coverage of every NCAA Tournament game in its entirety. You’ll recall that in previous years only games deemed of interest to your geographic region were shown on your local CBS affiliate, and unless you had a dish or went to a sports bar you were at the mercy of the CBS programmers to get the best games.
This year’s games will once again be shown on CBS, TNT, TBS, and truTV, where the SU-UNCA contest will appear Thursday afternoon. truTV was formerly known as Court TV and usually specializes in reality-based programming such as trials or ‘caught on tape’ shows. SU’s first round win over Indiana State last year was also shown on truTV. So get ready for a whole lot of promos for shows such as "Hardcore Pawn" and "Hulk Hogan's Micro Championship Wrestling" that you'll never think about again once the game is over. If you do, we need to have a talk.
If SU beats the Bulldogs on Thursday, they will play on Saturday afternoon vs. the winner of the Kansas State – Southern Mississippi matchup. That game precedes the Orange and Bulldogs on Thursday, tipping at approximately 12:40 p.m. eastern, and should provide a suitable warmup/scouting opportunity for those of you who are skipping work recording the game to watch later on.
Jeremy Ryan is a writer/editor for CNYcentral.com in Syracuse. Follow him on Twitter @JeremyRyan44.