The schedule is already up and CBS has sent out a press release regarding the announcing assignments so without further ado, let's do it to it. Here is your schedule for the games next Thursday and Friday and I must say, I am very surprised with what CBS has decided to do. (all times eastern; games I get are in bold)
Thursday, March 25, Window 1 (Click here for coverage map)
#5 Butler vs. #1 Syracuse 7:07 (Salt Lake City - Gus Johnson and Len Elmore)
#11 Washington vs. #2 West Virginia 7:27 (Syracuse - Dick Enberg and Jay Bilas)
Thursday, March 25, Window 2 (Click here for coverage map)
#6 Xavier vs. #2 Kansas State Approx. 9:37 (Salt Lake City - Gus Johnson and Len Elmore)
#12 Cornell vs. #1 Kentucky Approx. 9:57 (Syracuse - Dick Enberg and Jay Bilas)
Friday, March 26, Window 1 (Click here for coverage map)
#6 Tennessee vs. #2 Ohio State 7:07 (St. Louis - Verne Lundquist and Bill Raftery)
#10 St. Mary's vs. #3 Baylor 7:27 (Houston - Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg)
Friday, March 26, Window 2 (Click here for coverage map)
#9 Northern Iowa vs. #5 Michigan State Approx. 9:37 (St. Louis - Verne Lundquist and Bill Raftery)
#4 Purdue vs. #1 Duke Approx. 9:57 (Houston - Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg)
Yeah. You're not the only one that is surprised. Why on earth would you not put GuJo in Syracuse or St. Louis where he could call some potentially dramatic upsets? Better yet, why on earth are they sending Grandpa Dick all the way out east to get the big potential upsets? I love Enberg and I admit I have not heard a lot of him this tourney, but does he really still have it in him to handle the moment when an Ivy League team beats a #1 seed to advance to the Elite 8? I'll repost this later in the week when I find out what games I am getting, but here are my best guesses (which while not always published, have been all correct for every Window except Sunday's 2nd Window).
Butler/Syracuse
Cornell/Kentucky
Tennessee/Ohio State
Purdue/Duke
(Update: 4 for 4, bitches. 4 for 4.)
Boy I hope that last one is wrong and I get NIU-Sparty instead of Purdue-Duke but I can't recall a time in the NCAA Tournament where KYW and WYOU did not show a Duke game as our main feed. MMOD, here I come!
(Hat tip to Fang's Bites for the Press Release)
Well, sending Verne and Raft to St. Louis is just sticking the knife in a little further.
ReplyDeleteIf I had to guess now on Sunday night, I know I'm getting both Friday games in the Lou. Thursday's games I could throw a dartboard at (probably GuJo then IceBerg).
ReplyDeleteNantz must have it in his contract to do the Regionals in Houston (also did them in '08).
@ kt: Meet me in Saint Louie! Oh, wait, that is not helping anything is it..;-)
ReplyDelete@ RJBO: Nantz is from Houston and he has ties to the city. Plus Duke is there and CBS loves Duke. Thus it should come as no surprise that was the only announce team-city pairing that I guessed correct.
Update: 4 for 4, bitches. 4 for 4.
ReplyDeleteAs I had theorized on Sunday, GuJo-IceBerg Thursday, then a double dose of Verne & Raft in the Lou on Friday. Can't complain.
Seeing as I am stuck with it on TV, I might as well hope that Alex Herrmann is right and Purdue does beat Duke on Friday.
ReplyDeleteBut in case he is wrong, I will have MMOD up and running.
I hope Mookie is happy to have me commenting on his Huskies...
ReplyDelete