Another Day of Madness: Schedule of Saturday’s eight games and ranking of today’s announcers
Four games on CBS, 2 on TNT and 2 on TBS; Harlan and Lappas best of today's lot
By David J. Halberstam 03/23/2019
Schedule of today’s telecasts and announcer rankings:
Play-by-Play ranking
Kevin Harlan – Strong, in-command, knowledgeable and welcoming
Ian Eagle – Sharp, enthusiastic, prepared, wry sense of humor
Andrew Catalon – Growing on me, sounding more comfortable and shares anecdotes
Carter Blackburn- Potential to grow further, can still sound stiff and eager to force in every note
Analysts
Steve Lappas – Brings instructive insight of a coach, human, passionate, instinctive and less calculating with his comments
Jim Spanarkel – Bright, reads game conditions and does not over-talk
Debbie Antonelli – Depth of understanding of the game and impresses me with her analysis although she never played men’s game
Reggie Miller – Smart, funny, very engaged and can be critical
Dan Bonner – Student of the game, very clear on the rules but his analysis is shallowest among his peers
Saturday NCAA Tournament TV Schedule:
12:10p on CBS from Jacksonville
(6) Maryland vs. (3) LSU
Ian Eagle and Jim Spanarkel
Afterward on CBS from Jacksonville
(7) Wofford vs. (2) Kentucky
Eagle and Spanarkel
5:15p on CBS from Des Moines
(10) Florida vs. (2) Michigan
Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller and Dan Bonner
Afterward on CBS from Des Moines
(10) Minnesota vs. (2) Michigan St
Harlan, Miller and Bonner
6:10p on TNT from Hartford
(12) Murray St. vs. (4) Florida St.
Carter Blackburn and Debbie Antonelli
Afterward on TNT from Hartford
(6) Villanova vs. (3) Purdue
Blackburn and Antonelli
7:10p on TBS from Salt Lake City
(9) Baylor vs. (1) Gonzaga
Andrew Catalon and Steve Lappas
Afterward on TBS from Salt Lake City
(5) Auburn vs. (4) Kansas
Catalon and Lappas
March Madness on CBS and Turner: The good and not so good. The studio shows are fun
CBS and Turner release their March Madness announcer assignments for the first week of games
Bracketology: Who won? ESPN’s Lunardi, CBS’ Palm, Fox’ Schwab or the Big Ten Network’s Katz
The comment about Debbie Antonelli is interesting because the men’s and women’s games are not the same–same sport, same rules, but there are differences, and I’m reminded of John Wooden’s comment in his later years that he preferred women’s basketball to men’s because women played the game more according to the fundamentals, which, of course, he considered incredibly important. Come to think of it, women players do have in common with men that neither of them gets a dime from the shoe contracts ….