ATLANTA, GA – March 29, 2012 – Atlanta-based MELT (Marketing, Entertainment, Lifestyle and Trends), a fully integrated sports and entertainment marketing agency, has completed work on its second consecutive Coke Zero branded basketball program for CBS, a 30 minute special airing at 3:00 PM ET on Saturday, March 31, leading into CBS’s NCAA Men’s Final Four coverage. Coke Zero Presents: The Big Dance In The Big Easy will be hosted by CBS Sports’ Greg Gumbel and Clark Kellogg, and will feature the most iconic moments from New Orleans’ storied history as an NCAA Men’s Final Four host city.
“We couldn’t be more proud to work with Coke Zero and some of the greatest legends in NCAA history to produce this riveting history and commentary of these endemic moments”, said MELT CEO Vince Thompson. “Final Fours held in New Orleans seem to always produce some magical moments, and Coke Zero Presents: The Big Dance In The Big Easy will remind the viewer why the spirits of both NCAA basketball and New Orleans are so important in America today.”
Gumbel and Kellogg will discuss four iconic moments from New Orleans’ NCAA Final Four history. The show features in-depth interviews with James Worthy, Jim Boeheim, Roy Williams, John Thompson, and countless other college basketball greats. Moments include North Carolina’s 1982 National Championship, the first for Coach Dean Smith, Keith Smart’s last second shot to clinch the National Championship for Indiana in 1987, North Carolina’s controversial championship victory over Michigan in 1993, and Hakim Warrick’s iconic block in 2003, which sent Syracuse home as National Champions.
MELT is producing its second consecutive NCAA Final Four broadcast for Coke Zero. In 2011, Most Impressive Moments of March Madness, Presented by Coke Zero aired on CBS in the same timeslot, leading into CBS’ NCAA Final Four coverage. The program was hosted by Greg Gumbel and featured legends Bill Walton, Mateen Cleeves, and Christian Laettner live from NCAA Bracket Town, refreshed by Coke Zero. Craig Silver, an Emmy award-winning producer and coordinating producer of CBS’ coverage of the SEC football broadcasts, leads MELT’s original content production unit with David Goldstein, Director of MELT Original Content Productions.
“This is MELT’s 10th Final Four working for the Coca-Cola Company”, said Thompson. “We couldn’t be more thrilled to work with the greatest brand in the world on the greatest property in sports.”