It’s Final Four week and as all of the fans and media anxiously await for the Saturday evening to arrive, the on-air crew at Turner Sports is preparing to broadcast its first-ever national semifinals. We all know and love Ernie Johnson for the tremendously entertaining work he does on the best sports show on television, Inside the NBA, but during this upcoming weekend he will again cross over into our world as the primary NCAA host for the Final Four (TBS) and the National Championship Game (CBS). In this special Rush the Takes podblast, Ernie discusses how he and colleagues Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith prepare for their annual foray into the NCAA Tournament, what Turner has in store for the Final Four with its innovative “Teamcasts,” and whether RTC might be the long-awaited sponsorship opportunity for EJ’s Neat-O Stat of the Night. Oh, and he may have also done a Chuck and Shaq impression or two. It’s fantastic stuff, and we really hope you give it a listen.

Ernie Johnson Spoke With Us About the Upcoming Final Four

Be sure to add the RTC Podcast to your lineup on iTunes so that you’ll get all of our ongoing coverage throughout the NCAA Tournament.

We know you’ve been anxiously awaiting it, so here goes. The RTC Podblast is back, just in time for you to fill out your final bracket — the one that you’ve been secretly stashing away all week for the cool billion — with predictions about which teams are heading to the Elite Eight and beyond. Go ahead and pick your own upsets in the first three rounds — the real points are earned in the latter stages of the Tournament, and we’ve got you covered there. This season’s theme — believe in the teams you’ve always believed in, reject those that you don’t. We’ll find out how that works very soon. Enjoy the holidays, everyone! The full rundown is below.

• 0:00-2:40 – Lessons From Regional Previews
• 2:40-7:14 – Still Think the Bracket Is Wide Open?
• 7:14-8:22 – UCLA: The “Should Have Seen It Coming Team”
• 8:22-11:43 – South Region Predictions
• 11:43-17:04 – East Region Predictions
• 17:04-19:27 – West Region Predictions
• 19:27-22:05 – Midwest Region Predictions
• 22:05-26:00 – Picking a National Champion
• 26:00-28:13 – Dark Horse Picks
• 28:13-31:17 – What We Are Most Excited For in Round of 64/Wrap

And now, for the analysis. This is the second of two posts that we will be publishing today, the contents of which will contain two regional preview RTC Podblasts each — make sure to check out the East and Midwest podblasts that were released this morning. We continue the series this afternoon with a breakdown of the South Region bracket, inviting RTC national columnist Bennet Hayes (@hoopstraveler) in to talk through whether the Gators are really the best team in America. We follow that up with analysis of the West Region bracket, bringing national columnist/Pac-12 guru Andrew Murawa (@amurawa) in to discuss a west-coast flavored region that appears to be Arizona and the Rest. The full rundowns are below. Be sure to add the podcast to your lineup on iTunes so that you’ll get all of our ongoing coverage throughout the NCAA Tournament.

South Region

• 0:00-7:17 – Florida the Favorite
• 7:17-17:38 – UCLA, Kansas and Syracuse Try to Knock Off #1 Overall Seed
• 17:38-20:36 – VCU, Stephen 5. Austin and The Trendy #5/#12 Upset
• 20:36-25:18 – #7/#10 and #8/#9 Games
• 25:18-26:50 – Seeding Injustices in the South
• 26:50-27:58 – Great Potential Match-ups
• 27:58-30:52 – Bennet’s Pick for the South

West Region

• 0:00-6:03 – Arizona Hands Down Favorite
• 6:03-10:41 – Top Challengers For Arizona
• 10:41-13:28 – Match-ups For McBuckets
• 13:28-14:57 – Potential Upsets For the 4/5 Seeds
• 14:57-15:57 – Mis-seeded Teams
• 15:57-19:21 – #8/#9 and #7/#10 Games
• 19:21-21:22 – Dark Horse Sweet Sixteen Teams
• 21:22-23:23 – Predicting MOP
• 23:23-24:45 – Dream Match-ups
• 24:45-26:35 – Madness and Offense Could Reign Supreme in the West
• 26:35-28:59 – West Coast Teams in the West Region
• 28:59-30:31 – Non-Arizona Picks

And now, for the analysis. Welcome to the first of two posts that we will be publishing today, the contents of which will contain two regional preview RTC Podblasts each. We’ll start with a breakdown of the East Region bracket, inviting RTC national columnist Brian Otskey (@botskey) in to talk things through what appears to be a wild region with us. We follow that up with analysis of the Midwest Region bracket, inviting national columnist Walker Carey (@walkerRcarey) in to discuss a very difficult draw for #1 seed Wichita State. The full rundowns are below. Be sure to add the podcast to your lineup on iTunes so that you’ll get all of our ongoing coverage throughout the NCAA Tournament.

East Region

• 0:00-3:31 – Virginia as a #1 Seed and Region Favorite
• 3:34-10:25 – Which Top Seed is the Real Favorite
• 10:25-12:25 – Providence’s Big East Run – Hitting Their Stride or Peaking Too Early?
• 12:25-16:11 – 8/9 and 7/10 Games Preview
• 16:11-23:10 – Potential Upsets and Darkhorses
• 23:10-25:22 – Match-up Issues for Virginia
• 25:22-26:40 – Dream Match Ups
• 26:40-30:30 – Regional Games at MSG

Midwest Region

• 0:00-4:34 – Louisville as the Real Favorite in the Midwest
• 4:34-7:33 – UMass Prone For an Upset?
• 7:33-13:04 – Previewing 7/10 and 8/9 Game
• 13:04-13:53 – Conference Tournaments Impact on Midwest Region
• 13:53-16:35 – TJ Warren and the Fightin’ NC States
• 16:35-21:34 – Wichita State’s Realistic Expectations in this Region
• 21:35-23:28 – Predicting an MOP in the Midwest
• 23:28-25:49 – Most Exciting Thing About the Region
• 25:49-28:08 – Dream Match-Ups

There wasn’t a whole lot of controversy this year, but several decisions by the NCAA Selection Committee certainly raised some eyebrows. In an effort to briefly hit on a few of those points in the hours immediately following the bracket’s release this evening, the RTC Podblast crew, hosted by Shane Connolly (@sconnolly114) walked through a few quick n’ dirty reactions. The guys will return with detailed analyses of each of the four regions on Tuesday, followed by a number of quick-hit podblasts throughout the rest of the week. Make sure to add the RTC Podcast to your iTunes lineup so that you’ll automatically upload it on your listening device after we record. The full rundown is below.

• 0:00-4:55 – Initial Bracket Reactions/The Questionable Louisville Seeding
• 4:55- 6:02 – Other Bracket Surprises
• 6:02-6:53 – Teams With the Easiest Roads
• 6:53-8:33 – Regions Stacked With Talent
• 8:33-11:34 – Takeaways From Conference Tournaments Heading Into the Big Dance
• 11:34-12:25 – Virginia Gets Final #1 Seed
• 12:25-13:41 – Lower Seeds That Can Make a Run
• 13:41-15:30 – Upset Possibilities
• 15:30- Previewing The Week in RTC’s Coverage of March Madness (Bracket Nonsense, etc.)

The regular season is over, Championship Week is here, and it’s now or never for all of the teams that have talked a rather big game but haven’t necessarily backed it up with their play on the court. To that end, we’re going to be rolling out nine RTC Podblasts this week, one to preview each of the seven power conference tournaments as well as the Atlantic 10 and the Mountain West (to scroll through all that have been released, click here). In this, our ACC Tournament edition, RTC microwriter Matt Patton (@rise_and_fire) joins us to discuss a top-heavy field headed to Greensboro. The Big East, AAC, SEC and Big 12 Tournament pods were released on Monday, and the Big Ten and Pac-12 Tourney previews came out earlier today. Be sure to check back for the A-10 and MW preview podblasts tomorrow. Enjoy!

Make sure to add the RTC Podcast to your iTunes lineup so that you’ll automatically upload it on your listening device after we record.

• 0:00-3:17 – Virginia Earned Its ACC Title
• 3:17-8:06 – Best ACC Team and NCAA Tournament Potential
• 8:06-12:09 – Disappointing ACC Teams
• 12:09-13:51 – Predictions to Be Proud Of
• 13:51-20:29 – ACC POY and First Team Discussion
• 20:29-23:43 – Is Virginia the Favorite in Greensboro?
• 23:43-25:43 – Dark Horse Picks
• 25:43-28:04 – Pitt’s Upside/Downside in the ACC Tournament
• 28:04-30:53 – Team With the Most to Gain
• 30:53-33:40 – Final Thoughts on the ACC Tournament

The regular season is over, Championship Week is here, and it’s now or never for all of the teams that have talked a rather big game but haven’t necessarily backed it up with their play on the court. To that end, we’re going to be rolling out nine RTC Podblasts this week, one to preview each of the seven power conference tournaments as well as the Atlantic 10 and the Mountain West (to scroll through all that have been released, click here). In this, our Pac-12 Tournament edition, RTC microwriter Andrew Murawa (@amurawa) joins us to discuss what he expects to see this week in Sin City. And he talks some basketball too. The Big East, AAC, SEC and Big 12 Tournament pods were released on Monday, and the Big Ten preview came out earlier today. The ACC will drop a bit later this afternoon, with the A-10 and MW coming tomorrow. Enjoy!

Make sure to add the RTC Podcast to your iTunes lineup so that you’ll automatically upload it on your listening device after we record.

• 0:00-5:16 – With or Without Brandon Ashley – Arizona is the Class of the Pac-12
• 5:16-6:57 – Disappointing Teams
• 6:57-9:02 – Stanford Vindicates Drew
• 9:02-13:02 – What the Pac-12 Bubble Teams Need to Do in Vegas
• 13:02-13:58 – Teams With the Most to Gain
• 13:58-19:02 – Non-Arizona Options to Win
• 19:02-25:03 – Pac-12 Superlatives
• 25:03- Previewing Drew’s Days in Vegas

The regular season is over, Championship Week is here, and it’s now or never for all of the teams that have talked a rather big game but haven’t necessarily backed it up with their play on the court. To that end, we’re going to be rolling out nine RTC Podblasts this week, one to preview each of the seven power conference tournaments as well as the Atlantic 10 and the Mountain West (to scroll through all that have been released, click here). In this, our Big Ten Tournament edition, RTC microwriter Deepak Jayanti (@dee_b1g) joins us to discuss one of the most interesting conference tourneys heading into Indianapolis. The Big East, AAC, SEC and Big 12 Tournament pods were released on Monday, and the Pac-12 and ACC will be out a bit later today with the others dropping on Wednesday. Enjoy!

Make sure to add the RTC Podcast to your iTunes lineup so that you’ll automatically upload it on your listening device after we record.

• 0:00-2:52 – Michigan’s Surprise Big Ten Title
• 2:52-9:47 – Which Team Is the Best and Which Team Has the Most Potential
• 9:47-13:00 – Big Disappointments in the Big Ten
• 13:00-14:52 – Preseason Predictions Review
• 14:52-17:49 – All-Big Ten and POY Discussion
• 17:49-22:09 – Non-Michigan Choices to Win the Big Ten Tournament
• 22:09-23:57 – Bubble Team Requirements to Make the NCAA Tournament
• 23:57-25:37 – Teams With a Lot to Gain
• 25:37-27:03 – Can Michigan State’s Vets Get It Together?

The regular season is over, Championship Week is here, and it’s now or never for all of the teams that have talked a rather big game but haven’t necessarily backed it up with their play on the court. To that end, we’re going to be rolling out nine RTC Podblasts this week, one to preview each of the seven power conference tournaments as well as the Atlantic 10 and the Mountain West (to scroll through all that have been released, click here). In this, our AAC Tournament edition, RTC microwriter Mike Lemaire (@mike_lemaire) joins us to discuss the haves and have-nots in this unbelievably stratified league. The Big East and SEC Tournament pods have already released; the Big 12 Tournament edition will release a bit later today; and the remainder will come a bit later this week. So keep an eye out.

Make sure to add the RTC Podcast to your iTunes lineup so that you’ll automatically upload it on your listening device after we record.

• 0:00-4:37 – Cincinnati and Louisville Tied at the Top
• 4:37-5:54 – Disappointing Teams
• 5:54-8:58 – Evaluating First Year of the American
• 8:58-13:19 – Great POY Race and Other First Teamers
• 13:19-15:13 – Will Lack of Size Affect Teams in the NCAA Tournament?
• 15:13-17:58 – Preseason Predictions Reviewed and Celebrating SMU
• 17:58-18:44 – Which Top Team is the Favorite?
• 18:44-20:47 – Team With the Most to Gain
• 20:47-23:08 – Bottom Five Team With Best Chance to Win a Game
• 23:08-25:25 – Dream Championship Game
• 25:25-27:50 – What Will the Crowd Be Like for Louisville and Memphis?

It’s all about coming full circle on the 2013-14 regular season in this week’s RTC Podblast, and to help us through some of the key questions as we enter the final weekend of play and start looking ahead to March Madness, the guys welcome Sporting News‘ columnist Mike DeCourcy. For those of you who have been listening to us all season, you might recall that DeCourcy was our first Rush the Take guest way back in the preseason. He may have aged five months since then but his takes are as relevant as ever. Full circle.

As usual, the rundown is below if you’d like to skip around to the most interesting parts. Also keep an eye out early next week as we’ll be releasing a bunch of podblasts previewing the upcoming conference tourneys as we head into the heart of Championship Fortnight.

Make sure to add the RTC Podcast to your iTunes lineup so that you’ll automatically upload it on your listening device after we record.

• 0:00-3:05 – Down Goes Duke
• 3:05-5:18 – Struggling Syracuse
• 5:18-8:27 – Saint Louis Blue
• 8:27-25:20 – Rush the Take: Mike DeCourcy
• 25:20-35:35 – Final Weekend Preview