INDIANAPOLIS -- In its basketball configuration, Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, site of the Final Four national semifinals Saturday and national championship game Monday, seats 70,000 people -- with all those people spread across the expanse of the stadium focused on a hardwood area 94-feet long by 50-feet wide.
Not many people will be really close to the action.
CBS Sports will not have many camera operators or hand-held camers close to the court, either.
"The NCAA has helped us get closer to the court," said director Bob Fishman. "Our main play-by-play camers are farther away, but we're going to have cameras all over the court -- robotic cameras."
Long, powerful lenses will make the game action from the primary play-by-play cameras look no different than what college basketball fans typically see on TV, and with robotic cameras stationed all over the place (attached to the backboards, tables on the baseline and even near the benches), fans should see all they want of the three remaining games of the season.
Howard Bryant, vice president of production for CBS Sports, calls the cameras focused on the benches "the big ad" for the Final Four. As the NCAA Tournament progresses and games become more and more important, CBS Sports typically adds more gizmos and technology to cover the games.
Another difference this weekend is the location of the court. Last season the court was centered on the football field at Ford Field in Detorit, and that'll be the same again this year. It's the first time basketball games have been played with that configuration at Lucas Oil Stadium, though. Previous games here, whether part of a regular season doubleheader with Indiana or as part of an NCAA Regional, all featured the hardwood positioned in an end zone of the football field.
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