Doug Gottlieb balled in the NCAA Tournament with Oklahoma State and now he covers college basketball like a wet glove for CBS Sports Network, following a long tenure with ESPN.
Potential Impact NCAA Tournament Players:
“Everybody poured on Marcus Smart because he couldn’t hit a jump shot, but since he’s been back his overall game is better and he can’t be stopped. He’s a beast.”
“I would also say Russ Smith. Look at his numbers the past month. They (Louisville) go small now sometimes to create more space and they trust giving Smith the ball with the shot clock winding down."
"Doug McDermott obviously. But I’ll tell you the best guy nobody is talking about and that’s Kyle Anderson of UCLA. First player in Pac 12 history to have 200 rebounds and 200 assists and he’s starting to hit jump shots and he’s an impossible cover. Impossible. He’s 6-foot-8. He’ll box you down if you’re a little guard. If you’re a big guard, he’ll go around you. He’s tough. UCLA’s got some guys who can score. Him and Jordan Adams they can go. Anderson is legit.”
Overrated squads entering NCAA Tourney :
“Wichita State. I mean, I like them and I think they’re good but what would they do in the ACC? How would they fare against Big Ten comp? In terms of being rated I don’t think they’re a phony. I just don’t think they’re the second-best team in the country. If they played Syracuse tomorrow, I’m taking Syracuse. If they played Florida tomorrow, I’m taking Florida. I still think they can beat them, but… Nova and Carolina, neither team can shoot. I would actually fight for San Diego State to get a better seed, but they can’t score. Lack of scoring is throughout all of college basketball though. They have no second option on offense and can’t really stretch you out, but they can sure guard.”
Memorable NCAA moment:
“Last year I got to cover Wichita St. beating Gonzaga but that wasn’t the good one. The cool one was when Texas Southern almost beat Gonzaga. We’re sitting there at Energy Solutions Arena courtside and Spero Dedes is my play-by-play. We’re sitting there going, ‘holy, you know what. We’re going to have a 16 beat a 1. We’re going to be doing the game.’ And with like four minutes and some change left, Southern is down by 2 and the whole place comes to their feet and the entire crowd is cheering for Southern. I don’t know what it is in the instruments, but Southern's band is always louder and clearer than everybody else’s band. It was a 16 seed against a No. 1 seed on the floor but as far as the bands went it was in reverse. Gonzaga’s band was like a high school band against the pros from Southern. It was incredible. Just the chills it gives you when you think about the fact that everybody was cheering for Southern who had been on academic probation two years before. It was so bad that the coaches had to help the players with their homework because they had no academic advisors and of course they aren’t even eligible for the tournament this year because of APR restrictions.”
“Harvard beating New Mexico last season was crazy too. Harvard’s what, the oldest Ivy League and best school in America? For them to win on that athletic stage was just sick.”
