CBS Sports and Turner Sports Announce Studio Programming Plans and Special Guests for 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four in Minneapolis
CBS’s Pregame Coverage on Saturday, April 6, Begins with At the Final Four presented by Infiniti at 3 p.m. ET, Followed by The Final Four Show at 4 p.m.
Saturday’s Opening Hour to Feature Special Guest Two-Time National Championship Winning Head Coach Jay Wright & All-Access with Each of the National Semifinalist Teams
Capital One Championship Central to Start Monday’s National Championship Coverage at 8:30 p.m. on CBS
Turner Sports and CBS Sports will provide exclusive coverage of the 2019 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship from Minneapolis, Minn., with Auburn, Virginia, Texas Tech and Michigan State competing for the National Championship. CBS will televise the NCAA Final Four National Semifinals on Saturday, April 6, and National Championship on Monday, April 8. National Semifinal game coverage will begin this Saturday at 6 p.m. ET, with CBS featuring three hours of pre-game coverage beginning at 3 p.m.
The three consecutive hours of live, on-site studio coverage from Minneapolis will begin with At the Final Four presented by Infiniti (3-4 p.m.). Greg Gumbel will host with former college basketball stars Candace Parker and Wally Szczerbiak, along with insider Seth Davis and two-time National Championship-winning Head Coach Jay Wright of Villanova. The first hour will feature behind-the-scenes content for each of the four National Semifinalist teams, via the ongoing March Madness Confidential series.
The Final Four Show (4-6 p.m.) will feature special guests, pregame analysis and interviews with each of the National Semifinalist head coaches. Ernie Johnson will host from inside the arena, starting at 4 p.m. with analysts Charles Barkley, Clark Kellogg and Kenny Smith.
CBS will televise the National Championship on Monday, April 8, with Capital One Championship Central pre-game coverage starting at 8:30 p.m., followed by the opening tip at 9:20 p.m.
Monday’s pregame show will feature Johnson, Barkley, Kellogg, Smith, Gumbel and Davis on site from the National Championship. The night’s coverage will also showcase a taped two-song performance from Sunday’s Capital One Jamfest at the March Madness Music Series featuring Katy Perry and Zedd, along with interviews with both head coaches ahead of the National Championship.
Saturday’s NCAA Final Four National Semifinals will feature Auburn against Virginia at 6:09 p.m. on CBS. Texas Tech against Michigan State will follow 40 minutes after the completion of the Auburn/Virginia game. For the fifth consecutive year, Jim Nantz will call the action with analysts Grant Hill and Bill Raftery and reporter Tracy Wolfson.
Accompanying the live television coverage, NCAA March Madness Live will once again provide live streaming of the NCAA Final Four National Semifinals and the National Championship Game.
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