ESPN’s 2012 Championship Week Presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods will showcase a record 137 men’s college basketball conference tournament games from Thursday, March 1 to Sunday, March 11, surpassing last year’s record-setting 126 contests. Coverage highlights:
- Overall, ESPN, ABC, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN3 will combine to offer exclusive coverage of 86 games, while ESPN3 will simulcast another 51 matchups available in the local markets via syndication.
- The networks will combine to offer coverage of 23 Division I conference title games and action from 25 conferences overall, plus the Division II CIAA tournament.
- For the first time, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU will televise the entire ACC Tournament, including no local market blackouts on any of the 11 games.
- This season will mark ESPN’s 27th, ESPN2’s 18th and ESPNU’s seventh year of comprehensive coverage. ESPN will televise 20 games, ESPN2 27, ESPNU 22 and ABC three games, while ESPN3 will offer 14 exclusive contests.
- In addition to all 15 BIG EAST games and the entire ACC Tournament, ESPN, ABC, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN3 will combine to provide action of multiple men’s games from several top conferences, including all 11 of the SEC, all nine from the Big 12 and four from the Big Ten.
ESPNU and ESPN3 will tip off Championship Week with two exclusive games each on Thursday, March 1: Atlantic Sun quarterfinals on ESPN3 at 2:30 and 8:30 p.m. ET and Big South semifinals on ESPNU at 6 and 8 p.m. Championship Week will conclude on Sunday, March 11 with the ACC (ESPN) and SEC (ABC) title games at 1 p.m. Additional platform coverage:
- ESPN Buzzer Beater – available to Time Warner Cable Sports Tier, Bright House Networks Customers and Verizon FiOS TV Ultimate HD and Extreme HD Customers – will provide live cut-ins, highlights and up-to-the-minute commentary from numerous Championship Week games from across the ESPN networks Thursday, March 8 and Friday, March 9.
- The entire Championship Week coverage will also be available via WatchESPN, which delivers live access to ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN3 and ESPN Buzzer Beater/Goal Line on PCs, smartphones and tablets to fans who receive ESPN’s linear networks as part of their video subscription from Time Warner Cable, Bright House Networks or Verizon FiOS TV. WatchESPN is available free for Android devices from the Android Market and for Apple devices from the App Store, as well as online via WatchESPN.com.
- ESPN 3D will offer coverage of every BIG EAST Conference tournament matchup.
- ESPN International will offer extensive coverage, reaching 208 million households in 224 countries and territories on ESPN America – Great Britain (25 games), ESPN America – Europe (25 games), ESPN America -Middle East (23 games), ESPN2 Caribbean (23 games), ESPN Pac Rim (11 games), ESPN2 Australia (23 games), ESPN Atlantic (15 games), ESPN Middle East (16 games), ESPN Dos Venezuela (four games), ESPN Dos Mexico (four games), and on ESPN China, ESPN Hong Kong, ESPN India, ESPN Malaysia, ESPN Philippines, ESPN Asia and ESPN Taiwan.
Week Concludes with Extensive Day-Long Coverage
The final day of Championship Week – Selection Sunday, March 11 — will begin at noon with College GameDay Covered by State Farm on ESPN, followed by the ACC Championship (on ESPN) and SEC Championship (on ABC), both at 1 p.m. Extensive coverage of the men’s NCAA Championship selection will include a three-hour Bracketology Presented by Staples at 3 p.m. and a two-hour edition at 7 p.m., both on ESPN. ESPN will also offer selection coverage during SportsCenter at 6 p.m.ESPNU will televise an hour look at the final moments of some of the best games during Championship Week with Crunch Time: Championship Week Special at 8 p.m., followed by the sixth annual NIT Selection Show at 9 p.m. and a three-hour Tournament Countdown edition of The Experts at 9:30 p.m.
Commentator Notes
- BIG EAST: Sean McDonough, Jay Bilas and Bill Raftery, who will pair up to call nine BIG EAST games, will work the semifinals and championship with Doris Burke reporting from the sidelines. Burke will also serve as an analyst on six BIG EAST games with commentator Dave Pasch. Beth Mowins will report on eight of the telecasts and Andy Katz will report from four.
- ACC: Dan Shulman will call seven of the ACC games, including the semifinals and championship. He will work four games with analyst Fran Fraschilla, a semifinal with Len Elmore and a semifinal and championship with Dick Vitale. Mike Patrick and Elmore will pair up on four games. Jeannine Edwards will report on eight while Erin Andrews will work the semifinals and championship.
- Big 12 & SEC: Brad Nessler, Jimmy Dykes and Shannon Spake will call nine SEC games including semifinals and title game on ABC, while Brent Musburger, Bob Knight and Holly Rowe will work five Big 12 telecasts.
- Six Games & Two Titles: Dave Flemming and Sean Farnham will pair up to work six games together: five from the West Coast Conference and the WAC championship.
- In addition to…: In addition to his four ACC games, Fraschilla will work the Ohio Valley Conference semifinals and championship with Bob Wischusen. Wischusen will also work the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and Mid-American Conference title games.
- Big Ten: Dave O’Brien and Dan Dakich will call the four Big Ten telecasts.
- Multiple Titles: Several analysts will work multiple championships, including LaPhonso Ellis on the Big South, Southern and America East; Stephen Bardo on the Horizon League and Mid-American Conference; and Miles Simon on the Big West and Big Sky.