Duke lost to Michigan State in the Elite Eight and that’s the worst nightmare for CBS and ESPN who have nothing to talk about now.
The season is over for Duke and in all likelihood the college career for Zion Williamson. The Duke freshman phenom was the most exciting thing about college basketball this season and now the Final Four goes on without it’s brightest star, and that’s the last thing CBS and ESPN were hoping for.
No disrespect to Texas Tech, Michigan State, Virginia or Auburn who make up the Final Four, but unless you are a fan of those programs, it’s not going to generate much national excitement and enthusiasm to watch these teams play.
Are you really going to be excited to watch Texas Tech or Virginia play defense? They’re the best at it, but it’s not as fun as watching Zion jump so high he has to duck his head from hitting the backboard or rim when he’s dunking or blocking shots.
The money is already collected for CBS, but the ratings for the Final Four and National Championship Game aren’t going to be as robust as they would have had Duke and Zion been playing in them.
Sure, die-hard college basketball fans will be watching, just as they do every year, regardless of the teams and players, but the casual fan isn’t going to give a care this year. Not with this quartet.
CBS already collected the cash for the TV contract to air March Madness, but advertisers selling commercials during the broadcast have to be pounding their heads on their desk knowing it won’t have the exposure it would have had in a Final Four with Zion.
What’s ESPN going to talk about for the next week without a Zion game to hype? There will be no more highlight-reel dunks, blocked shots, or even a basic rebound for fans to leave their jaws agape.
I’m sure the talking heads on ESPN will survive and get some run out of Duke losing, but that’ll fade by Tuesday afternoon.
And then what?
Good luck selling fans on watching a rock fight between Texas Tech and Michigan State or watching Virginia throw it back to 1950 when they play Auburn.
Of course, the only one to blame in this is Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski who got thoroughly outcoached by Tom Izzo despite a decided talent advantage.