The 12 Best March Madness Sports Announcer Calls of All Time

There's a reason they call it March Madness.

No other tournament in the world seems to be quite as explosive in the closing moments of a game like NCAA college basketball's. But the unforgettable details of the most memorable buzzer-beaters and near-triumphs in March Madness history wouldn't have been as such without the perfect call by an announcer to match the emotion, intensity and unpredictability of all.

These aren't just some of the greatest tournament moments of all time, they're also the best announcer calls that turned those moments into college basketball history.

12. Jim Nantz: 'He's Gotta Put It Up! Aaand…He Wins It!

(Highlight at :20 seconds of the above video.)

2023 Final Four, No. 5 seed San Diego State vs. No. 9 seed Florida Atlantic

Recency bias notwithstanding, Jim Nantz made us consider so much in the final nine seconds of San Diego State's Final Four win over super Cinderella Florida Atlantic.

FAU misses a bucket and clings to a tenuous one-point lead with nine seconds left. As the Aztecs grab the rebound and rush up the court, Nantz questions whether they'll burn their one timeout as the clock keeps ticking.

He adds even more tension by squeezing in that San Diego State's best scorers aren't on the floor, before calling out that with two seconds left, Lamont Butler has "gotta put it up!"

Butler sinks it from the wing and Nantz tops off his comprehensive play-by-play with a well-earned outburst, "Aaand, he wins it!"

It's just an awesome call of a beautiful March Madness moment. 

11. Verne Lundquist: 'By George! The Dream Is Alive!'

(Highlight at 2:50 of the above video.)

2006 Elite Eight, No. 11 George Mason vs. No. 1 UConn

Nobody, and I mean nobody, thought No. 11 seed George Mason had a shot in hell against the UConn juggernaut in this 2006 Elite Eight matchup.

But Jim Larranaga's team pulled off the impossible, even after UConn's Denham Brown hit a buzzer-beating reverse layup to send the game to OT.

A nutty finish saw the Huskies nearly win the game as time expired, but Brown missed a three, and Verne Lundquist cemented George Mason in tournament lore by proclaiming: "By George! The dream is alive!"

10. Kevin Harlan: 'He Drops the Anvil' FGCU (2013)

(Highlight at :23 seconds of the above video.)

2013 First Round, No. 15 FGCU vs. No. 2 Georgetown

Sometimes, an all-time great tournament call doesn't need to involve a buzzer-beater.

When No. 15 seed Florida Gulf Coast University was swiftly punching its ticket into the Sweet 16 by beating second-seeded Georgetown in 2013, FGCU's Chase Fieler caught a high pass on a fast break for a titanic alley-oop dunk.

"He drops the anvil!" Kevin Harlan shouted, which is such a badass reaction to this punctuation mark on one of the biggest upsets in tourney history. 

9. Billy Packer: 'They Won It…on the Dunk!'

(Highlight at :40 seconds of the above video.)

1983 National Championship Game, No. 6 NC State vs. No. 1 Houston

It wasn't so much what Billy Packer said as NC State took down heavily favored Houston team led by Clyde Drexler, it's how he let Jim Valvano's Wolfpack shine through it all in an insane turn of events.

Lorenzo Charles turned a fluky missed three into an alley-oop dunk, and Packer seemed as surprised as everyone watching the busted play that won the title.

Jimmy V runs the floor with a massive smile, Houston's players pound the hardwood in disgust and it's one of those tourney moments you see replayed on a telecast every year.

8. Tim Ryan: 'Edney Going the Distance'

(Highlight at 1:10 of the above video.)

1995 Second Round, No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 8 Missouri

UCLA was down a point with 4.8 seconds to go in its 1995 second-round game against Missouri, and Tyus Edney famously ran the entirety of the floor for a clean layup at the buzzer and the win.

Announcer Tim Ryan almost didn't catch up to Edney's improbable run up the court and only realized that Edney was, in fact, "going the distance" once the point guard crossed the free-throw line en route to the bucket.

UCLA went on to win the 1995 championship, and this was hands down the most memorable moment of the Bruins' run. 

7. Sean McDonough: 'Hamilton No … Hamilton Yes!'

(Highlight at 0:30 seconds in the video above.)

1998 Sweet 16, No. 2 UConn vs. No. 11 Washington

Sean McDonough nailed this call in UConn's last-second desperation win over Washington in the Sweet 16. Down a point with under 10 seconds to go, the Huskies had a bevy of future NBAers on the floor.

Khalid El-Amin dished it to big man Jake Voskuhl, who missed a fallaway floater. The rebound got swatted away in Divac-ian fashion, right into the hands of mid-range king Rip Hamilton, who missed the look ("Hamilton no!") only to have the ball fall in his hands again off the tipped rebound and sink the fallback jumper for the win (Hamilton yes!").

McDonough walked himself into a yin-yang call for the ages, and coach Jim Calhoun celebrated like a driveway hoop dreamer.

6. Ian Eagle: 'Shock and Awe in College Basketball History'

(Highlight at 2:53 of the above video.)

2018 First Round, No. 16 UMBC vs. No. 1 Virginia

The term "shock and awe" might be a stretch when talking about college basketball, but it oughta be reserved for a moment like the first-ever No. 16 seed beating a No 1 seed.

Ian Eagle captured UMBC's unprecedented win over Virginia perfectly "when he declared shock and awe in college basketball," and while another No. 16 seed (Fairleigh-Dickinson) would soon go on to beat a No. 1 (Purdue, in 2023), Eagle's call made it so we'll never forget our first from March 2018.

5. Verne Lundquist: 'There’s the Pass to Laettner…Puts It Up…Yes!'

(Highlight at 4:48 of the above video.)

1992 Elite Eight, No. 1 Duke vs. No. 2 Kentucky

It doesn't matter how old you are—if you're a college basketball fan, you know about Christian Laettner's epic buzzer-beater off a full-court pass from Grant Hill to lead Duke past Kentucky in a 1992 Elite Eight game.

Verne Lundquist doesn't say a word when the ball is in the air on its way across the court. It's this long pause from Lundquist's that feels like we're all holding our breath to watch the totality of this ridiculous pass and shot.

He's so tempered in his call, pauses again as Laettner makes his move and then the ball goes in and there's that huge payoff. "Yes!" A veteran move from the legendary Lundquist.

4. Ted Robinson: 'A Miracle! An Absolute Miracle!'

(Highlight at 2:38 of the above video.)

1998 First Round, No. 13 Valparaiso vs. No. 4 Ole Miss

Coach Homer Drew's 1998 Valparaiso team became synonymous with the term "Cinderella" following this 1998 last-second finish and the infamous bucket forever known as "The Shot."

Ole Miss' Ansu Sesay missed two free throws that potentially would've iced the game on the other end. The rebound on the second shot was tipped out of bounds with only 2.5 seconds left for Valpo, down two. The inbounds pass then went three-quarters of the court to set up an unlikely shot attempt.

On a play that Valpo called "Pacer," Bill Jenkins skied to catch the pass over two defenders above the three-point line and passed it while still in the air to the coach's son, Bryce Drew, who hit a clean three for the win, and Ted Robinson narrated the play to a tee.

Similarly to Lundquist on the Laettner shot, Robinson stays calm on the long pass, maintains his cool and roars when the bucket goes in. It's as if he's on the verge of exploding, but keeps his composure to deliver the post script: "A miracle! An absolute miracle!"

It captured Valpo's underdog story so well.  

3. Gus Johnson: 'Heartbreak City!'

(Highlight at 1:51 of the above video.)

2006 Sweet 16, No. 3 Gonzaga vs. No. 2 UCLA

You really didn't think we'd go this entire time without bringing up Gus Johnson, did you?

Look, it's a downright travesty that Johnson parted ways with March Madness after 2011, but he still left us with two of the three greatest calls of all time when he was in the booth.

The first one is a storybook call of Gonzaga's 2006 Sweet 16 meltdown against UCLA, where the Zags blew a 17-point lead and star Adam Morrison was left weeping on the court.

In the final three possessions, the Bulldogs turned the ball over twice, UCLA won and Morrison wept.

You've surely seen the footage, when Morrison is overcome with emotion after the second turnover, and then curls up on the floor and starts crying again after J.P. Batista misses a jumper to tie it at the buzzer.

Through the entire sequence, Johnson goes nuts like a frat bro watching the game after downing a dozen beers but still manages to capture the scene immaculately: "After being down by 17, heartbreak city!"

2. Jim Nantz: 'For the Championship!'

2016 National Championship Game, No. 2 Villanova vs. No. 1 North Carolina

Kris Jenkins' three-point shot at the buzzer to give Villanova the 2016 tournament championship is the greatest bucket in March Madness history. Bar none. And Jim Nantz and Grant Hill's team approach on the call was a thing of beauty.

'Nova's Kris Jenkins inbounds the ball with 4.7 seconds left, and Nantz begins narrating as Ryan Arcidiacono furiously dribbles up the court with Jenkins coyly trailing him. As the play slowly unfolds, Hill says in a lower tone, "watch Jenkins," before he takes the pass from Arcidiacono.

Nantz takes the cue and calls the shot, "for the championship!" and it goes in. An unbelievable play and the best play-by-play and color commentating combo on a play we've ever heard in the tourney. Bravo, fellas. 

1. Gus Johnson: 'The Slipper Still Fits!'

(Highlight at 0:43 seconds of the above video.)

1999 Sweet 16, No. 10 Gonzaga vs. No. 6 Florida

Ahhh, Gus Johnson. We miss you every year at tourney time, buddy.

Our greatest call of all time harkens back to when Gonzaga became, well...Gonzaga. Sure, now over a quarter-century later Mark Few's Bulldogs are a March Madness mainstay, but in 1999 the legend was beginning, and Few was in his final year as an assistant.

Forward Casey Calvary tipped in a rebound to put Gonzaga up by one with 4.4 seconds left, before Florida missed a rushed attempt as time expired.

The term "Cinderella" gets thrown around a ton at tourney time, deservedly so. But "the slipper still fits!" embodies exactly what it means to be a tourney Cinderella.

Johnson knew precisely how to build up the mystique of the underdog team and how there's no other tournament in the world that gives small schools a shot to topple the titans. On the call, Johnson thrives in this sort of controlled chaos that helps the viewer get wrapped up deeper in the madness, and he puts on a masterclass in his profession here.