
No game-winners on Day 1 of the Tourney (although VCU came close) - which means no reason for announcers to yell. Calm the hell down, fellas...
Here's the deal: unless it decides the game, it's just someone putting a ball into a basket, an act for which screaming like a banshee is inappropriate. The worst screamer is Kevin Harlan, above right with partner Dan Bonner. But Gus Johnson is an egregious offender as well. Harlan, incidentally, should never be allowed to call another basketball game again, ever - besides all the unnecessary shouting, he regularly reels off meaningless statistics, like "Gonzaga has three field goals in the past five minutes."
It's the yelling that really gets to us, though, and not just because it hurts our heads. It seems prefabricated and inauthentic - especially, if, in Harlan's case, what's being screamed is some inane catchphrase - "Right between the eyes!" Plus, if you're shouting like that over a three-pointer ten minutes into the game, what are you going to do if someone actually hits a game winner, have an orgasm? A seizure? You can't go any higher when the moment actually deserves big emotion. It's like if your girlfriend throws a gigantic fit because you looked at a woman on the street. What's she going to do when you sleep with her sister?
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NCAA Tournament Coverage: Jay Bilas Is No Dick Vitale [VIDEO]