New Partnership Provides Lions With Same Video Tech as Pro Teams

The Emerson Athletics Department’s new partnership with PlaySight Interactive will provide live streams of games for fans, and also help players improve their game in real time.

Emerson will now be using a fixed and portable connected camera platform used by the Boston Celtics and many other professional teams to help with player development. The technology is being installed at indoor and outdoor facilities.

“The streaming capability will allow fans and families of student-athletes who can’t attend games to get a great viewing experience from home,” said Matt Horan, interim director of athletic communications.

The mobile capabilities will allow the Athletics Department to get coverage of all competitions, whether they are on campus or away, said Horan.

We help college coaches and programs to be more efficient with video from both practices and games.

Our latest partnership with Emerson College (which includes their basketball program): https://t.co/OabTL27Vy2@NEWMACsports @EmersonLions @EmersonHoop pic.twitter.com/TRMz3zcANP

— playsight (@PlaySight) June 23, 2022

Men’s Basketball Head Coach Bill Curley said the video system’s ability to track action provides a pro-level breakdown that will free coaches up to spend more time analyzing games.

“Our players want to be the best they can be in the classroom and on the court,” said Curley. “To have the ability during a practice of after a game to see how they made a cut or made a defensive position, is tremendous. There’s an old coaching adage — video doesn’t lie.”

The livestream experience, particularly in the Bobbi Brown and Steven Plofker Gymnasium, will allow teams and viewers at home the ability to switch between multiple angles as they watch the game.

“Coaches can use PlaySight to tag their video and give real time feedback to their athletes via [instant reply and an app],” said Matt Gibson, MA ’14, PlaySight’s director of sales and a former Emerson men’s basketball assistant coach.

Pat Nicol, director of athletics and associate dean for campus life, said Horan spearheaded the partnership with PlaySight. She said it is a progressive decision that will take “advantage of these ever changing technological opportunities.”

The PlaySight initiative was made possible through support provided by the March 31, 2022 Athletics Day of Giving, as well as the Emerson College Athletics Trust Fund and The Lions Fund, said Nicol.

“The generosity that we received from this year’s Athletics Day of Giving, along with the … support we receive through [the] Emerson College Athletics Trust Fund and The Lions Fund, will enhance the athletic experience for our coaches, student athletes, fans, and families,” she said. “Partnering with PlaySight is a technological opportunity that will complement Emerson’s standards of communication excellence.”

“At Emerson, we take pride in the quality of our game-day broadcasts. Being an institution with a highly regarded communications department, we hold our game-day productions to a high standard,” said Horan. “In the athletic department, we want our alumni, fans, and parents to enjoy high quality streams of our games and PlaySight will allow us to do that.”