truTV ready for its closeup

Sports fans are accustomed to turning to TNT and TBS for major events, but what the heck is truTV, the third Turner outlet that will carry NCAA games?

The 20-year-old channel used to be known primarily for trial and crime coverage as Court TV; it has branched out into other reality programming.

“I’ll be honest, that’s part of the reason and the excitement that we took on this tournament and put it on three of our networks, to get truTV to have more viewers and more reach,” Turner Sports president David Levy said.

The channel’s new-found prominence is going to take getting used to, though.

“I believe we’re on truTV right now,” studio host Ernie Johnson joked Tuesday during a breakfast to preview the tournament. “But I could be wrong.”