Jim Nantz has known as last-second pictures for an NCAA championship, undefeated groups falling quick within the semifinals and unlikely underdogs making the Final Four. But as Nantz prepares to name his thirtieth Final Four for CBS, he’ll do one thing this weekend that appeared unbelievable for a very long time watch his alma mater on the massive stage once more.
Nantz, Bill Raftery and Grant Hill will name the Houston-Baylor recreation, the primary semifinal scheduled Saturday. Nantz graduated from the University of Houston and bought his begin in broadcasting by means of the basketball program. He was the general public tackle announcer throughout Cougars dwelling video games after which hosted the weekly highlights present of Hall of Fame coach Guy Lewis within the early Eighties.
Having Houston within the Final Four is a really huge deal to me. The basketball program’s been an vital a part of my life, Nantz mentioned. It has been an extended highway again and I’m thrilled. It was quite a lot of lean years since my days of being round Phi Slama Jama.
Nantz left Houston in 1982 to change into a weekend sports activities anchor in Salt Lake City however he made it to the 1983 championship recreation the place Houston misplaced to North Carolina on a last-second shot.
His ties to the Cougars nonetheless run deep. He teamed up with former roommates Fred Couples and Blaine McCallister to create this system’s first endowed scholarship. This yr’s recipient of the Three Amigos scholarship is sophomore guard Marcus Sasser, who’s second on the crew in scoring at 13.5 factors per recreation.
Nantz has vowed to be neutral throughout Saturday’s recreation, saying there will probably be equal love for Baylor. The second recreation will match undefeated Gonzaga in opposition to UCLA.
Houston’s journey to the Final Four isn’t the one excellent news Nantz has needed to soak in over the previous couple weeks. He celebrated his mother’s ninetieth birthday earlier this week alongside along with his contract extension with CBS that was introduced final week.
Nantz, whose contract was set to run out later this spring, and CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus mentioned negotiations weren’t contentious. Nantz has been with CBS since 1985 and known as his first Final Four six years later.
I needed to be a one-network man. I couldn’t be extra grateful to have the ability to do the occasions that I needed to do, he mentioned.
McManus mentioned there was by no means a Plan B if Nantz had left as a result of it wasn’t going to be a chance.
Jim goes to be with us, thank heavens, for a lot of, a few years to come back, McManus mentioned. It was only a matter of time and getting it carried out, however our pursuits are aligned.
Even although the coronavirus shut down sports activities for almost three months final yr, Nantz could be the most-traveled announcer since sports activities returned. He has known as 14 golf tournaments (just one remotely), 21 soccer video games, together with this yr’s Super Bowl, three video games throughout the Big Ten basketball event and 9 NCAA video games heading into the Final Four. Nantz’s base of operations for the previous three-plus weeks has been Indianapolis, the place all the boys’s NCAA Tournament video games have been performed.
Nantz mentioned he has been extraordinarily cautious in observing CBS well being and security protocols, together with being primarily confined to the lodge earlier than and after occasions. That has additionally made the standard challenges of doing the Final Four and Masters back-to-back much more particular this yr.
Its been quite a lot of time of isolation. I believe you’ll be able to go anyplace on-line to learn tales about how folks handled the isolation, its not simple,” he mentioned. “But the actual pleasure is definitely when you may have an opportunity to get to the sector, you get to see your teammates, and also you get to place some nice tv on right here.
Ive gotten so accustomed to having this outstanding run by means of March and into April with the Masters and everyone knows the final yr there was an enormous void in all of our lives. There was no reside sports activities programming at the moment final yr, so Ive positively appreciated it an entire lot extra.
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More AP faculty basketball protection: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket
