Gus Johnson Won't Watch March Madness

Way to CBS, way to go.

A few weeks back, it was announced that Gus Johnson, the broadcaster synonymous with March Madness, could not reach an agreement with CBS for a new contract, and therefore would no longer provide play-by-play for college basketball games on the network.

That alone is bad enough.

But, according to a New York Times article published on Thursday, Johnson will not be watching next season's NCAA Tournament either.

He said he would miss the N.C.A.A. tournament, but he does not plan to watch next March, the same way he did not watch the Knicks until January or so. But Johnson also reiterated that he did not fear leaving the tournament “that made me.” He described his split from CBS as amicable, a necessary step.

Like in many relationships that end in a messy break-up, sometimes it is necessary to stay away from anything that might serve as a reminder to the falling out. And unfortunately for Johnson, this means not watching March Madness.

But why should Johnson's decision to not watch next season's tournament effect you?

Well, because there will come a point next March when a Belmont or a Wofford rallies back from down-7 in the last minute to force overtime against a Kansas or a Kentucky. All hell will be on the cusp of breaking loose.

As CBS goes to commercial, your buddy will say something along the lines of "I wonder what Gus Johnson is saying right now" or "Somebody get Gus-Jeezy on the phone and tell him he's needed in Lexington!"

Then you will remember that he's probably in the backyard having a catch with his son, or at Home Depot getting some new tiles for the kitchen floor. You will realize that Gus Johnson, the man that perspires March Madness, has no idea what is going on.

It's during moments like these when you will realize just how much CBS screwed up.

Yeah, it doesn't seem like a big deal now, but you just wait.

March will never be the same again.

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George Mason knocks off Villanova as Gus Johnson shines

Gus Johnson breeds excitement.

Seriously. Its unreal. It seems like every game that he calls in the NCAA Tournament comes down to the wire, so it should be no surprise that No. 8 George Mason's exciting, 61-57 comeback win over No. 9 Villanova had Mr. March Madness on the call.

Mason was down for much of the second half, and after getting to with a point on a couple of different occasions midway through the half, the Patriots found themselves down 54-48 with about two minutes left in the game. But the Patriots used a 13-3 run, capped by an emphatic put-back dunk from Mike Morrison and an ankle-breaking, step-back three from Luke Hancock.



The only thing less surprising than an exciting finish with Johnson on the call is a late-game collapse by Villanova.

For the second straight season, the Wildcats finished off a disastrous finish to their year with an early exit in the NCAA Tournament. And much like their first round loss to South Florida in the Big East Tournament, the Wildcats looked as good early in the game as they did bad down the stretch.

Corey Fisher and Corey Stokes were both on fire in the first half, but neither could buy bucket in the second half as Jay Wright's team, once again, resorted to dribbling the air out of the ball. Its almost frustrating to watch Villanova late in a game. Fisher and Maalik Wayns seemingly take turns dribbling out the shot clock and forcing up a tough shot.

One of the talking points coming into the tournament was that the Big East was overrated; that there was no way that a league sending 11 teams to the tournament would produce results living up to expectations; that the Big East had a lot of good and not much great.

And while Villanova lost this game, don't let that sway your opinion about the Big East's performance as much as, say, Louisville's loss to Morehead State.

Most folks had George Mason winning this game. I know I did. In fact, a Villanova win would have been a much more surprising result. Using this as evidence of the lack of power in the Big East would be a slap in the face of this Patriot team.

Villanova lost their last six games, eight of their final 10, and ten of their final 14. George Mason was on a 16 game winning streak -- the longest in the nation -- when VCU beat them in the semifinals of the CAA Tournament. George Mason is a very good basketball team, even if they didn't play like it for the first 38 minutes today.

The most impressive part about this victory is that George Mason was able to win despite getting poor performances out of both Cam Long and Ryan Pearson, their two leading scorer. The two combined for 15 points, 10 boards, four assists, and six turnovers on 4-17 shooting from the field. Instead, it was Luke Hancock (18 points, five assists) and Mike Morrison (10 points, 11 boards, four offensive) that carried the Patriots.

Those two are going to be very important on Sunday.

George Mason is not a very big basketball team. They don't have a lot of depth in their front court, which is not a good thing with Ohio State and Jared Sullinger on the docket for Sunday.

The Buckeyes are also a very good defensive team, and Hancock, despite being the team's small forward, is the team's best ball handler and creator.

Ohio State is the best team in the country. There are not many teams that matchup well with them, and George Mason is no different.

But if the Patriots get the kind of play they got out of Hancock and Morrison today, and Pearson and Long play up to their standards, GMU has a shot.

No one thought Jim Larrananga was going to be able to knock off UConn in 2006, either.
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Mr. March Madness: No. 4 The Slipper Still Fits

March is a great month. Not only because it ushers in the start of spring, but because of March Madness, the greatest sporting event of the year.

There are many reasons why March Madness is great. The endless basketball, the great games, the upsets, and the the buzzer-beaters. But there is one thing that ties all of these great reasons together, and that one thing makes all of those reasons infinitely better.

Gus Johnson.

In honor of his contribution to March Madness, B.I.A.H will be counting down the 10 greatest calls from Gus Johnson. Now, not all of the clips are from March Madness, but all of them are instant-classics.

Here is No. 4: The Slipper Still Fits

Not only is this the signature call in Gus Johnson's resume, it is also one of the most iconic calls in college basketball history.

The Gonzaga program has long been known as the pioneers of "the Cinderella story". A small catholic school from Spokane, WA should never be able to challenge the big universities of the mid-west and the east coast. But somehow, someway, the Zags always seemed to be primed for a March Madness upset.

In 1999, Gonzaga, the No. 10-seed won their first-ever tournament game, defeating No. 7 Minnesota, win the first round, then had to face No. 2 Stanford in the round of 32. Gonzaga beat Stanford by eight, setting up an unlikely Sweet Sixteen showdown with the No 6. Gators.

Florida trailed 52-44 with 14:08 to play, but clawed back to even things up after Udonis Haslem made the second of two free throws and a lay-in to tie the game 67-67 with two minutes to go. Florida's Greg Stolt nailed a 3-pointer from the left wing to give Florida a 72-69 lead with 45.7 seconds to play, but a Jeremy Eaton-layup with 19.7 seconds left made it a one-point game. Florida got the ball but Brent Wright was called for traveling as he tried to call timeout, which would give Gonzaga the ball back with 15.4sec to play.

From here, well you know the rest:




"CALVARY....HALL....HALL....THE RUNNNNEEEEERR....LOOOOOSEE BALLLL....IT'S GOOOOD."

"SHANNON........SHANNNON....FROM THE CORNEEEERRRRRRR....AND IT'S ALL OVER"

"GONZAGA....THE SLIPPER STILL FITS"


Those final four words " The slipper still fits" has become a hallmark of the Gonzaga program. This was arguably the school's signature moment, and the program has had a meteoric rise to success since Gus-Jeezy uttered those four glorious words.

For Gus Johnson, this was the call that started it all.

Mr. March Madness: No. 5 - Cold. Blooded.
Mr. March Madness: No. 6 - Sorrentine from the parking lot
Mr. March Madness: No. 7 - Heartbreak City
Mr. March Madness: No. 8 - Sylvester for three
Mr. March Madness: No. 9 - Hey coach, play this kid
Mr. March Madness: No. 10 - Overtime in Seattle
Mr. March Madness: The Preview


To browse the rest of our Mr. March Madness countdown, click here.


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Mr. March Madness No. 5: Cold. Blooded.

March is a great month. Not only because it ushers in the start of spring, but because of March Madness, the greatest sporting event of the year.

There are many reasons why March Madness is great. The endless basketball, the great games, the upsets, and the the buzzer-beaters. But there is one thing that ties all of these great reasons together, and that one thing makes all of those reasons infinitely better.

Gus Johnson.

In honor of his contribution to March Madness, B.I.A.H will be counting down the 10 greatest calls from Gus Johnson. Now, not all of the clips are from March Madness, but all of them are instant-classics.

Here is No. 5: Cold-Blooded

Gus Johnson can make any great moment special, any special moment spectacular, and any spectacular moment unforgettable.

This was one of those moments.

Saturday March 12, 2011 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Pac-10 Championship game. The top-seeded Arizona Wildcats had been winning most of the game against the under-achieving No. 3 Huskies of Washington. The Huskies had won last season's tournament title and were looking to solidify their NCAA tournament status.

Down the stretch both teams hit big shots. CJ Wilcox burrtied a 3-pointer from the corner to send the game into overtime for UW, then Kevin Parrom hit a 3-pointer from the side to tie the game up at 75.

That's when Isaiah Thomas, last season's tournament MVP took over.

That's when we would be entering "Gus Johnson Time"



"SHOT-CLOCK TURNED OFF....GAME-CLOCK AT EIGHT....HE'S GONNA DO IT HIMSELF....THOMAS....SHAKE....CROSSOVER....STEP-BAAAACK....OOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"

"COOOOOOLD BLOODED"


Mr. March Madness: No. 6 - Sorrentine from the parking lot
Mr. March Madness: No. 7 - Heartbreak City
Mr. March Madness: No. 8 - Sylvester for three
Mr. March Madness: No. 9 - Hey coach, play this kid
Mr. March Madness: No. 10 - Overtime in Seattle
Mr. March Madness: The Preview


To browse the rest of our Mr. March Madness countdown, click here.


Continue reading...