Dick Vitale to Join Charles Barkley for First Four Broadcast in Dayton
dick vitale will call the second First Four game in Dayton on Tuesday, March 17, joining Charles Barkley with Brian Anderson on play-by-play — a move fans had long urged CBS to make. dick vitale’s appearance marks a notable addition to the combined CBS Sports and TNT Sports broadcast lineup for the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship.
Dick Vitale added to First Four booth in Dayton
The second game on Tuesday, March 17 in Dayton will feature Brian Anderson handling play-by-play with Charles Barkley and Dick Vitale in the booth and Jenny Dell reporting from courtside. The matchup is scheduled as one of the First Four games that kick off the tournament on March 17 and March 18 on truTV.
Final Four and championship teams named
Ian Eagle, Bill Raftery, Grant Hill and Tracy Wolfson will call the NCAA Men’s Final Four national semifinals on Saturday, April 4, and the National Championship on Monday, April 6 from Indianapolis on TBS. The quartet will reunite for a third straight year to handle those games.
Studio coverage will be split between multiple hubs: Adam Zucker and Nate Burleson will host from the CBS Broadcast Center in New York joined by Charles Barkley, Clark Kellogg and Kenny Smith; Adam Lefkoe will host from TNT Sports Studios in Atlanta with Bruce Pearl, Jamal Mashburn, Jalen Rose and Seth Davis. Ernie Johnson will host studio coverage on-site for the Final Four in Indianapolis, and Jamie Erdahl is set to provide game updates. Renee Montgomery and Bruce Pearl will make additional appearances from the CBS Broadcast Center.
First Four lineup, studio plans and who’s calling what
The First Four opening slate will include a mix of booths and studio feeds. Jordan Kent, Jim Spanarkel and reporter Jenny Dell will call the first Tuesday game and both Wednesday games from Dayton. Studio coverage for the First Four will originate from Atlanta with Adam Lefkoe and analysts Bruce Pearl, Jamal Mashburn, Jalen Rose and Seth Davis backing the on-site commentators.
The announced schedule puts the First Four at the top of the tournament calendar: tipoff is set for Tuesday, March 17 and Wednesday, March 18, with the Second Game on Tuesday carrying the high-profile Barkley–Vitale pairing.
Recovery and production plans for the Final Four remain set for Indianapolis on April 4 and April 6, when the Eagle–Raftery–Hill–Wolfson team will handle play-by-play and analysis for the semifinals and championship on TBS.
Next on the schedule: the tournament opens with the First Four on March 17–18, with the Barkley–Vitale–Anderson booth slated for the second First Four game in Dayton on March 17.
