NCAA Basketball commentators are Jim Nantz, Brian Anderson, Ian Eagle, Lisa Byington, and Kevin Harlan. They were the lead commentators for the 2022-23 season.
Jim Nantz, who has been associated with CBS for a long time will bid farewell and won't be part of the broadcast team for the upcoming season.
NCAA commentators basketball has remained the same for the most part in the last few editions of the basketball season with Jim Nantz as the lead.
The entire broadcasting team is comprised of experienced individuals who have either been players or coaches in the past or have been broadcasting for a number of years.
The voices of these individuals make the viewing of the games more interesting and are the actual sound behind the games. Their experience can predict the next move and analyze the game from a different point of view.
NCAA Basketball Announcers List
CBS NCAA Basketball announcers are:
- Jim Nantz
- Brian Anderson
- Ian Eagle
- Kevin Harlan
- Lisa Byington
- Andrew Catalon
- Spero Dedes
- Brad Nessler
Jim Nantz
Announcer Jim Nantz has been a sports commentator/announcer since 1980 and has been part of telecasts of the PGA Tour, NFL, NBA, and more. He was previously a studio host for College Basketball on CBS from 1986-1990.
He has been part of CBS Sports since 1985 and has only been associated with them throughout his career. Nantz has been the lead play-by-play announcer for the NCAA Men's Final Four since 1991 and the 2023 season was his final season.
Brian Anderson
The 52-year-old announcer has been in the business since 1998 and is the second play-by-play announcer for the NCAA basketball broadcast. He is also the lead announcer for the Milwaukee Brewers of the MLB.
He has been an announcer for the NCAA men's basketball tournament since 2012 and apart from this, he also calls for regular-season NCAA basketball games for Big Ten Network and FOX Sports among other sports.
Ian Eagle
Ian Eagle will replace Jim Nantz as the NCAA basketball announcers today starting from the 2024 season. Eagle will be the lead play-by-play announcer next season.
Eagle is one of the most reputed and renowned figures in the world of sports presenters with so much experience he has gained over the years, starting from 1992.
Ian Eagle and his team are currently third in the pecking order while broadcasting games for the basketball tournament.
Kevin Harlan
Kevin Robert Harlan has been active as an announcer since 1982 and is a two-time winner of the National Sportscaster of the Year award.
He calls for the NFL, NBA, NCAA football, and basketball. He has also been part of 13 consecutive Super Bowl broadcasts.
Lisa Byington
Lisa Byington is the only female basketball announcer in the lead role at the NCAA men's basketball tournament and the first woman to do so in March Madness' history.
The former soccer player also worked as a sideline reporter before she became a lead announcer. She is also the first female to become a lead announcer (full-time) for a major men's sport when she started calling for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Andrew Catalon
WAER Hall of Famer Andrew Catalon is an experienced announcer who has called for NFL, PGA Tour, and NBA, along with March Madness for CBS Sports.
Spero Dedes
Dedes has been an active announcer since 2001 and has been part of the CBS broadcasting team since 2009 as a full-time member.
His first instance of calling for the NCAA basketball tournament was in 2010 and since then has called for the NFL, College Football, and NBA. He has been the lead announcer for several franchises as well.
Brad Nessler
In 1980, Brad Nessler started his broadcasting career by sharing the announcing duties on the radio. He joined CBS Sports in 1990 and was part of calling NFL, college football, and basketball games.
He has also had a career calling games on ESPN which started in 1992 and made a return to CBS in 2016. His first March Madness calling duties were in 2018.
NCAA Basketball Broadcasters
NCAA basketball broadcasters are CBS, TNT, TBS, and truTV. The games are re-aired from all networks on CBS Sports Network. The channels are owned by CBS and WBD.
CBS and Turner Broadcasting had a joint contract with the NCAA that would give them broadcasting rights for college basketball games.
All the announcers, analysts, and reporters are shared and moved around all four TV networks. There are two studio segments that take place during the broadcast, CBS Broadcast Center and Turner's Studio.
The two studios are located in New York City and Atlanta respectively and have their own sets of studio hosts along with the studio analysts.
| Greg Gumbel | Host CBS Broadcast Center |
| Ernie Johnson Jr. | Host (WBD Sports Studios) |
| Adam Lefkoe | Host (WBD Sports Studio) |
| Adam Zucker | Host (CBS Broadcast Center) |
| Clark Kellogg | Analyst (CBS Broadcast Center) |
| Charles Barkley | Analyst (CBS Broadcast Center) |
| Kenny Smith | Analyst (CBS Broadcast Center) |
| Wally Szczerbiak | Analyst (CBS Broadcast Center) |
| Seth Davis | Analyst (WBD Sports Studio) |
| Jay Wright | Analyst (WBD Sports Studio) |
| Cadace Parker | Analyst (WBD Sports Studio) |
NCAA Basketball Analysts
NCAA basketball analysts are:
- Bill Raftery/Grant Hill
- Jim Jackson
- Jim Spanarkel
- Dan Bonner/Stan Van Gundy
- Steve Smith/ Avery Johnson
- Steve Lappas
- Deb Antonelli
- Brendan Haywood
Bill Raftery/Grant Hill
Bill Raftery and Grant Hill are paired with Jim Nantz and make up the first-choice announcing team. The trio with vast experience makes up the perfect team for the broadcasts. since the 2014/2015 season.
Raftery has been an analyst for CBS Sports since 1983 and covered college basketball. He has also worked for ESPN and was a lead analyst for the New Jersey Nets.
Hill on the other hand is a basketball Hall of Famer who started his broadcasting career in 2013 right after retiring from the NBA.
Jim Jackson
Jim Jackson brings his experience as a professional basketball player to the announcing team. He brings his experience as a player to the announcing team as an analyst and is partnered alongside Brian Anderson.
Jim Spanarkel
He too is a former basketball player who played for the 76ers and the Dallas Mavericks. His NBA career was short-lived and since then, he has had 30 years of experience as an analyst at Nets Television.
He is paired with Ian Eagle to make up one of the most experienced announcement teams for the games. Spanarkel will most probably be paired with some other lead announcer next season.
Dan Bonner/Stan Van Gundy
Dan Bonner serves as both a color commentator as well as an analyst for college basketball games and also the NBA. He started calling games for college basketball in 1991.
Stan Van Gundy is a former basketball coach who coached several teams between 1981 and 2021 including teams in the NBA.
The two of them are paired with Kevin Harlan and make up the fourth announcing team for college basketball games.
Steve Smith/ Avery Johnson
Steven Delano Smith was the 5th overall pick at the 1991 NBA Draft and is an NBA champion in 2003. The three-point specialist began his career as a broadcaster by announcing games for the Atalanta Hawks.
Johnson is a former player and coach who started his television career with ESPN in 2008 as an analyst. Smith and Avery are teamed up with Lisa Byington.
Steve Lappas
Lappas is a former coach with 17 years of experience. He is a color commentator as well as an analyst for college basketball and is paired alongside Andrew Catalon.
Deb Antonelli
Deb Antonelli is an analyst for various TV networks and is also the lead play-by-play announcer for the Indiana Fever. She is paired with Spero Dedes for the college basketball broadcast.
Brendan Haywood
He is a former basketball player and is an NBA champion in 2011. He has played professionally for over a decade in the NBA and is a good addition to the broadcasting team. He is paired with Brad Nessler.
