Google gives virtual tour of NCAA Championship arenas to get you closer to the basketball action

The 2011 NCAA Championship promises to be as action-packed as ever, but this year Google's helping you get just a little bit closer to the action courtesy of some 3D-rendered models of the tournament's 14 arenas. Using Google Earth, fans can explore the venues, or take a virtual tour courtesy of a YouTube video (embedded after the break).

Google's also set up a site for you to track the match-ups, scores, and the schools involved, integrating with Google maps. To settle the debate as to whether your favorite team has to travel further to their 'home' court than your rivals, Google's integrated a distance tool so you can actually measure it on a map. You can even click through from the site to see live streams of actual NCAA games via NCAA March Madness on Demand.

Google's also created a bracket-template using Google Docs, which you can use to invoke a bit of friendly rivalry in the office, tracking progression through the tournament and charting likely match-ups. If you simply can't get enough, however, Google's also got some Chrome Web Store apps for you to install, to keep track of the blow-by-blow action, even if you should be working.

Checkout Google's College Basketball coverage, have a look through the brackets, and explore the arenas in Google Earth, or hit the break for the virtual tour video.

Continue reading Google gives virtual tour of NCAA Championship arenas to get you closer to the basketball action

Google gives virtual tour of NCAA Championship arenas to get you closer to the basketball action originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 15 Mar 2011 04:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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