40 years of Final Fours: ‘It’s all about emotion,’ director says ahead of retirement
This year’s Final Four “could be epic,” Bob Fishman said recently.
It promised to be remarkable no matter which marquee program — Duke, Kansas, North Carolina or Villanova — wins the championship. That’s because it will be Fishman’s last as the director of the game telecasts.
“My 40th Final Four,” he said. “Actually, it would have been 40 if it were not for the cancellation in Atlanta (in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic).
“But I call it 40.”
Kentucky has played in nine Final Fours since Fishman became the lead director of CBS’s coverage of college basketball in 1982. He joined CBS News in 1972 and moved to CBS Sports three years later. He is directing the TBS telecasts of this year’s Final Four games.
His UK memories include 1996 when the Cats won the national championship in East Rutherford, N.J. “That was the last Final Four held in a conventional arena …,” he said. “(Then-UK coach Rick) Pitino and I became friends over the years. That’s the cool thing about having worked so many tournaments is my relationships with some of the coaches. Pitino, (Tom) Izzo and Coach K (Mike Krzyzewski).”
Kentucky winning the 1998 championship with Tubby Smith as coach also made a lasting impression. “I remember Kentucky was down, like, 10 points at halftime,” he said of UK’s 78-69 victory over Utah in the title game. Kentucky trailed 41-31 at halftime, then outscored the Utes 47-28 in the second half.
Anthony Davis made Kentucky’s 2012 championship memorable for Fishman. He recalled Davis blocking six shots in the title game against Kansas and 29 in the six NCAA Tournament games.
But numbers on a box score are not the NCAA Tournament memories dearest to Fishman.
“To me, as a director, it’s all about emotion,” he said.
For example, there was Jim Valvano looking for someone to hug after North Carolina State won the 1983 national championship game on a last-second putback dunk.
Or Louisville’s Kevin Ware breaking his leg in the 2013 Midwest Regional finals victory over Duke.
Or winning shots in title games by Michael Jordan (1982) and Keith Smart (1987).
The 1984 Final Four in Seattle stands out, but not because Kentucky made only three of 33 shots in the second half of a semifinal loss to Georgetown.
Fishman relishes having a camera capture Georgetown coach John Thompson hugging guard Fred Brown after the Hoyas beat Houston in the championship game. Two years earlier, Georgetown missed a chance to win it all when — trailing by one point — Brown accidentally threw the ball to James Worthy of North Carolina in the final seconds.
“I kind of pride myself and my crew in getting those special moments,” Fishman said.
Fishman was not directing the telecast of arguably the NCAA Tournament game most bursting with emotion: Duke beating Kentucky in the 1992 East Regional finals on Christian Laettner’s shot at the buzzer.
Fishman was in, of all places, Lexington to direct CBS coverage of the Southeast Regional. He recalled watching that UK-Duke game with Jim Nantz, Billy Packer and other members of the CBS crew.
“All standing around and watching that and all wishing, oh my God, why didn’t we have that game?” he said. ”We were all so jealous.”
Fishman, a 16-time Emmy Award winner and 2019 inductee into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame, grew up in the U.S. Virgin Islands. He said his family was in the hotel business.
A 1969 graduate of Boston University, Fishman got a job as a production assistant at the CBS affiliate in Philadelphia before moving to the network.
While retiring as a director for CBS Sports, Fishman intends to stay active in television and film projects.
Fishman, 73, is mindful of bowing out at the same Final Four as Krzyzewski.
“Very emotional time,” he said. “‘One Shining Moment.’ One final time from the (production) truck. I’ll probably be crying or stunned or I don’t know how I’m going to feel. But it’s going to be weird. I’ll tell you that.”
Rating clutch shots
Four College of Charleston students recently completed a two-week study of clutch shooting in the NCAA Tournament. They rated shots in terms of the pressure of the moment and the probability of success.
The pressure and probability factors included: the further into a tournament the game, the greater the stakes and the accompanying pressure to succeed. Other factors included how much time remained and if the score was tied or the shooter’s team trailed.
Of the 10 shots ranked, five came in the final seconds of overtime. Three were in the Final Four, two in Elite Eight games, two each in Sweet 16 and second-round games and one in the first round.
Tim Chartier, a professor of mathematics and computer science at Davidson, also participated. “I emailed various folks who work for NBA teams in analytics and other folks very close to basketball,” he wrote in an email.
Christian Laettner’s overtime buzzer-beater to defeat Kentucky 104-103 in the 1992 East Regional final received more first-place votes from the people Chartier contacted than any other shot. But it finished third overall.
Kristen Looney, a non-traditional student who participated in the study, recalled watching Laettner’s shot when it happened. Her immediate reaction? “Holy cow, I can’t believe it,” she said.
No. 1 in the rating of clutch shots was a three-pointer by Kris Jenkins that enabled Villanova to defeat North Carolina 77-74 in the 2016 championship game.
No. 2 was the shot by Jalen Suggs that gave Gonzaga a 93-90 overtime victory over UCLA in the 2021 national semifinals.
Rounding out the top 10 shots from fourth to 10th were Michael Jordan’s 1982 championship game-winner for North Carolina against Georgetown, Chris Chiozza’s game-winner for Florida against Wisconsin in the 2017 Sweet 16, Mamadi Diakite’s winner for Virginia against Purdue in the 2019 Elite Eight, Paul Jesperson’s winner for Northern Iowa against Texas in a 2016 first-round game, Jordan Poole for Michigan against Houston in the 2018 second round, Trey Burke for Michigan against Kansas in the 2013 Sweet 16 and LSU’s Tremont Waters against Maryland in the 2019 second round.
Donovan offers help
Only a day or so after Florida hired Todd Golden as its new coach, he received a congratulatory call from former Gators coach Billy Donovan. Donovan offered to help in the transition and going forward.
“I got goosebumps talking to him,” Golden said.
Golden, who led San Francisco into this year’s NCAA Tournament, played for Saint Mary’s. He then played professionally in Israel. He is a dual citizen of the U.S. and Israel.
“I really love his enthusiasm, his excitement for the job and trying to galvanize former players and the people in the program,” Donovan told FloridaGators.com. “His energy was just really, really good. By the time I called him, he had already talked to some of the former guys.
“Just speaking to him on the phone, he just seemed like (he) has the personality for the job and a really good grasp on what it’s going to take.”
Ulis update
Here’s an update on former UK All-American Tyler Ulis, who was injured in a serious car accident in February.
After successful surgery to repair a broken ankle, Ulis has returned home and uses crutches to move about, his father, James Ulis, said.
The next step in his son’s recovery will be to get out of a cast and begin therapy.
Condolences
To the family of former Kentucky player Roy Roberts, who died Wednesday at age 81.
Roberts played for UK in the 1959-60, 1961-62 and 1962-63 seasons. He averaged 7.3 points.
A funeral service is planned for Sunday beginning at 3 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Monroe, Ga.
The family asks that those wishing to make donations in Roberts’ memory do so to the George Walton Academy in Monroe or the Bethel Baptist Church in Good Hope, Ga.
Happy birthday
To DeAndre Liggins. He turned 34 on Thursday. … To Erik Daniels. He turned 40 on Friday. … To Chris Gettelfinger. He turned 64 on Friday. … To Brian Long. He turned 30 on Saturday. … To Jarred Vanderbilt. He turns 23 on Sunday (today).
This story was originally published April 2, 2022 at 3:00 AM with the headline "40 years of Final Fours: ‘It’s all about emotion,’ director says ahead of retirement."
