LEXINGTON, KY – FEBRUARY 28: Willie Cauley-Stein #15 of the Kentucky Wildcats grabs a rebound during the game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Rupp Arena on February 28, 2015 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

It’s amazing.  We can be frustrated over the NCAA’s ineffectiveness and the increasingly maddening state of college athletics.  We can complain about the current college basketball product and the decline in watchability.  We can wonder what the future will hold for the sport amidst a sea of so many issues… but there’s nothing quite as unique each year as the excitement for March Madness and the release of those parallel and perpendicular lines that form a 68 team bracket.

And for us at AA, there’s equal excitement and intrigue regarding which announcers are traveling where as there is in figuring out which 12 seed will be the one to upset a 5 seed.  Below you’ll find all the details on the First Four in Dayton on Tuesday and Wednesday and the First Round on Thursday and Friday.  (I know the terminology doesn’t officially change until next year, but why not buck the trend and choose common sense a year early.)

First the announcing assignments, then the full schedule including tip times, announcers, and which network will televise each game.

Announcing Assignments

Dayton (Tuesday): Brian Anderson, Steve Smith, Lewis Johnson
Dayton (Wednesday): Ian Eagle, Doug Gottlieb, Evan Washburn

Thursday/Saturday

Pittsburgh: Brian Anderson, Steve Smith, Lewis Johnson
Louisville: Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel, Allie LaForce
Jacksonville: Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas, Jamie Erdahl
Portland: Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller, Dan Bonner, Rachel Nichols

Friday/Sunday

Omaha: Marv Albert, Chris Webber, Len Elmore, Craig Sager
Charlotte: Jim Nantz, Bill Raftery, Grant Hill, Tracy Wolfson
Seattle: Spero Dedes, Mike Gminski, Jaime Maggio
Columbus: Ian Eagle, Doug Gottlieb, Evan Washburn

First Four

Tuesday, March 17

6:40 truTV Dayton I
16) Manhattan vs 16) Hampton
Anderson/Smith//Johnson

~9:10 truTV Dayton II
11) BYU vs 11) Ole Miss
Anderson/Smith//Johnson

Wednesday, March 18

6:40 truTV Dayton I
16) North Florida vs 16) Robert Morris
Eagle/Gottlieb//Washburn

~9:10 truTV Dayton II
11) Boise State vs 11) Dayton
Eagle/Gottlieb//Washburn

First Round

Thursday March 19 (Afternoon)

12:15 CBS Pittsburgh I
3) Notre Dame vs 14) Northeastern
Anderson/Smith//Johnson

12:40 truTV Louisville I
3) Iowa State vs 14) UAB
Lundquist/Spanarkel//LaForce

1:40 TBS Jacksonville I
3) Baylor vs 14) Georgia State
Catalon/Lappas//Erdahl

2:10 TNT Portland I
2) Arizona vs 15) Texas Southern
Harlan/Miller/Bonner//Nichols

~2:45 CBS Pittsburgh II
6) Butler vs 11) Texas
Anderson/Smith//Johnson

~3:10 truTV Louisville II
6) SMU vs 11) UCLA
Lundquist/Spanarkel//LaForce

~4:10 TBS Jacksonville II
6) Xavier vs 11) BYU/Ole Miss
Catalon/Lappas//Erdahl

~4:40 TNT Portland II
7) VCU vs 10) Ohio State
Harlan/Miller/Bonner//Nichols

Thursday Evening

6:50 TBS Pittsburgh III
1) Villanova vs 16) Lafayette
Anderson/Smith//Johnson

7:10 CBS Louisville III
8) Cincinnati vs 9) Purdue
Lundquist/Spanarkel//LaForce

7:20 TNT Jacksonville III
4) North Carolina vs 13) Harvard
Catalon/Lappas//Erdahl

7:27 truTV Portland III
5) Utah vs 12) Stephen F. Austin
Harlan/Miller/Bonner//Nichols

~9:25 TBS Pittsburgh IV
8) NC State vs 9) LSU
Anderson/Smith//Johnson

~9:40 CBS Louisville IV
1) Kentucky vs 16) Hampton/Manhattan
Lundquist/Spanarkel//LaForce

~9:50 TNT Jacksonville IV
5) Arkansas vs 12) Wofford
Catalon/Lappas//Erdahl

~9:57 truTV Spokane IV
4) Georgetown vs 13) Eastern Washington
Harlan/Miller/Bonner//Nichols

Friday March 20 (Afternoon)

12:15 CBS Omaha I
2) Kansas vs 15) New Mexico State
Albert/Webber/Elmore//Sager

12:40 truTV Charlotte I
7) Michigan State vs 10) Georgia
Nantz/Raftery/Hill//Wolfson

1:40 TBS Seattle I
5) Northern Iowa vs 12) Wyoming
Dedes/Gminski//Maggio

2:10 TNT Columbus I
5) West Virginia vs 12) Buffalo
Eagle/Gottlieb//Washburn

~2:45 CBS Omaha II
7) Wichita State vs 10) Indiana
Albert/Webber/Elmore//Sager

~3:10 truTV Charlotte II
2) Virginia vs 15) Belmont
Nantz/Raftery/Hill//Wolfson

~3:40 TBS Seattle II
4) Louisville vs 13) UC Irvine
Dedes/Gminski//Maggio

~4:40 TNT Columbus II
4) Maryland vs 13) Valparaiso
Eagle/Gottlieb//Washburn

Friday Evening

6:55 TBS Omaha III
8) Oregon vs 9) Oklahoma State
Albert/Webber/Elmore//Sager

7:10 CBS Charlotte III
1) Duke vs 16) North Florida/Robert Morris
Nantz/Raftery/Hill//Wolfson

7:20 TNT Seattle III
7) Iowa vs 10) Davidson
Dedes/Gminski//Maggio

7:27 truTV Columbus III
3) Oklahoma vs 14) Albany
Eagle/Gottlieb//Washburn

~9:25 TBS Omaha IV
1) Wisconsin vs 16) Coastal Carolina
Albert/Webber/Elmore//Sager

~9:40 CBS Charlotte IV
8) San Diego State vs 9) St. John’s
Nantz/Raftery/Hill//Wolfson

~9:50 TNT Seattle IV
2) Gonzaga vs 15) North Dakota State
Dedes/Gminski//Maggio

~9:57 truTV Columbus IV
6) Providence vs 11) Boise State/Dayton
Eagle/Gottlieb//Washburn

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