A retired Jim Nantz has traded neutrality for teary eyes.
Nantz, the former voice of March Madness and a Houston graduate, is just a famous fan of his alma mater at this point. And Houston’s record-setting, 70-67 Final Four comeback victory Saturday against Duke left him emotional as he watched from an expensive seat at the Alamodome in San Antonio.
Call it “a comeback unlike any other.”
Nantz, 65, dabbed his eyes and put his arm around his daughter, Caroline, whose face was painted with the university’s logo, as captured in footage shared by basketball analyst Jeff Goodman on X.
“That was incredible,” Nantz said as he walked to the locker room, according to Daly Dose of Hoops.
This is the second Final Four since Nantz retired from calling college basketball in 2023, when the final three games were played in … Houston, of course.
Nantz had to act impartial when the Cougars were in the 2021 Final Four, which marked their first appearance since three straight in 1982-84, right after Nantz graduated.
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Now Houston has advanced to Monday’s championship game against Florida after overcoming a 14-point second-half deficit and going on a 9-0 run over the final 33 seconds to steal the victory from Duke.
Houston had a win probability of 1.5 percent with 8:17 left, according to the college basketball analytics website EvanMiya.com.
The Cougars had not trailed by 14 points in any game this season before their stifling defense took over, and the Blue Devils struggled to even execute an in-bounds pass.
Ian Eagle replaced Nantz as the main television voice of the Final Four.
His alma mater, Syracuse, is working on its own Final Four drought, with no appearances since 2016 after going six times under legendary coach Jim Boeheim.
Tip-off in Monday’s championship is set for 8:50 p.m. ET.