Charles Barkley, Steve Kerr Join NCAA Tournament Telecast Mix for CBS, Turner

Filed under: March Madness, Media Watch, Sports Business and Media

When news broke in April that CBS and Turner had joined forces to lock up the rights to the NCAA men's basketball tournament for 14 years, one of the first pieces of speculation turned to whether the always volatile Charles Barkley would be added to the announcing mix for one of the more staid telecasts in the business.

Not only will Barkley be one of the studio analysts for the tournament in March, but the two entities announced Thursday that NBA analyst Steve Kerr will join Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg for a three-man booth at the Final Four.

CBS Sports President Sean McManus said, during a conference call to promote the network's AFC Championship Game coverage, that Barkley, whom he spoke with Wednesday during a Turner function, will be a key part of the telecast.

"Charles is excited about it," McManus said. "He's obviously a student of the game. He loves the game of college basketball. Our goal was to take the best of CBS and blend in the best of Turner. I think we've done that."

Source: http://ncaabasketball.fanhouse.com/2011/01/20/charles-barkley-steve-kerr-join-ncaa-tournament-telecast-mix-fo/

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