The Chainsmokers performed between Final Four games; is that a good idea?

INDIANAPOLIS — When the NCAA Tournament’s Final Four tipped off inside Lucas Oil Stadium, fans were treated to more than just college basketball. Between the national semifinals, electronic-pop duo The Chainsmokers took the stage in a made-for-TV concert designed to broaden the event’s appeal beyond hard-core hoop heads.

The performance, part of the governing body’s ongoing effort to court casual viewers, was beamed to a national audience and framed as the centerpiece of a mini-festival surrounding the games. “It’s an event our clients are asking us for now,” Dave Aussenberg, a music-sponsorship agent at CAA, told The Hollywood Reporter. “When the festival was first conceptualized, it was a nice-to-have complement to a weekend of basketball, but it’s growing so much. … People want entertainment, they want to make a weekend out of an event like this.”

Social-media reaction, however, was swift and largely critical. Posts flooded platforms questioning whether a high-energy EDM set meshed with the traditions of college basketball’s most hallowed weekend. Critics argued the interlude disrupted the competitive rhythm, while defenders saw it as a harmless attempt to modernize the spectacle.

The NCAA has not announced whether the halftime-style concert will return for future Final Fours, but the experiment has already sparked debate about how far the organization should go in blending sports with pop-culture entertainment.