CBS, Turner, Release Start Times For NCAA Tournament

While every game of the 2011 NCAA Tournament will be nationally televised on CBS, TBS, TNT or TruTV, there will be some unavoidable overlap between games — especially during the early rounds.

CBS and Turner Sports released the start times for the 2011 NCAA Tournament on Thursday, featuring a whopping 67 telecasts across CBS (26), TBS (16), TruTV (13) and TNT (12).

There were forty fewer telecasts last year, as most games aired in regional windows on CBS.

The tournament will get under way on March 15 and March 16, with opening round play-in games on Tru TV (6:30 and 9 PM ET both nights). As announced earlier in the year, the March 15 games will be called by the Final Four announcing team of CBS’ Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg and TNT’s Steve Kerr.

Play begins in earnest on March 17 and 18, with four games per network on each day. There will be staggered start times for most games, but at any given point during the day, there will be at least two concurrent games taking place.

Weekend coverage on March 19 and 20 includes afternoon games on CBS and primetime coverage on the Turner networks.

Overall, the first four full days of the NCAA Tournament will feature nonstop national television coverage between Noon ET and Midnight ET.

The second week of the tournament gets underway with the Sweet Sixteen on March 24 and 25. CBS and TBS will air primetime doubleheaders on both nights.

Starting with the Elite Eight on March 26, CBS will televise the rest of the tournament. The network’s start times will remain the same as in previous years, with the April 2 Final Four games airing at 6 PM and 8:30 PM, and the April 4 National Championship Game airing at 9 PM.

TV Schedule For the 2011 NCAA Tournament
TBS, TNT and TruTV may switch start times.

(Turner Sports)