Colin Cowherd Podcast - UConn vs. Duke MADNESS, Final Four Is Set, Top 5 NBA Prospects, Big Ten Resurgence

It’s March and the bracket’s bonkers. We were watching UConn-Duke tilt one way, I told Doug we could tape early, he said wait, it’s Dan Hurley—and he was right. UConn’s that pitcher who gets stronger late—physical, steady, built for March—so I brought in Doug Gottlieb, now grinding in year two at Green Bay, to break it all down.

From a coach’s seat, Duke was ready for UConn’s doubles and sliced them up for most of the night, then it flipped when UConn stacked stops, jumped passing lanes, and hit timely shots. Danny’s fire goes at refs and the crowd, not his guys, and that fight lifts his team’s toughness.

There were stretches where one guy had to carry the scoring and UConn didn’t always have that late-clock creator. Still, the DNA—Calhoun to Hurley—is length, defense, and grind, and Illinois is right there too, which leads to the projection game: the lightly ranked kid who turns lottery-caliber—how do you recruit that?

Be absurdly thorough. With extra COVID years, the mantra is get old and stay old, and the portal is speed dating—if you do not know the kid, the coach, and the AAU path, you are guessing. Illinois hit by pairing smart overseas work with a low-cost freshman find, and at some places two hundred fifty to three hundred grand goes to players who barely play, so intel and fit are everything.

Michigan looked massive live—the Spaniard owns the rim and their offense is gorgeous—and Arizona’s guards with Tommy Lloyd’s track record make them scary. People floated UNC for Tommy, but Arizona’s a monster job.

I hear the opposite—money’s not endless there, tension with the AD, and I was told Michael Jordan called. Tommy’s edge is twenty years of international relationships and evaluation, knowing who to trust when agents from everywhere flood your phone, and paying guys who fit your style and culture.

Basketball is math. If you are not bombing threes, win the possession war with offensive boards, turnovers forced, and free throws—especially with more continuations this year—and get starters to the bench on fouls with top-heavy NIL rosters. Pace only slows if your depth or talent says so, but more shots than them usually wins.

The Big Ten is rolling—money plus sharp coaching—and I could see Michigan-Illinois for the title. Is this mostly checks?

Checks and coaching, yes. The Big 12 is terrific too, but now that everyone can legally invest, the old SEC edge shrinks and the haves crush the have-nots; little guys might steal one, not two or three. We felt it versus Ohio State—millions on one side versus a mid-major budget is a different sport.

On coaches, Billy Donovan dominated at Florida, the Bulls feel unserious, and college benches skew older as recruiting turns administrative. If you were him, would UNC tempt you?

NBA life is pure hoops—no parents or admissions—which is why Brad Stevens loves it, but college is now quasi-pro with NIL and one-year deals. Carolina’s brand is special, timing with the portal and maybe Kentucky matters, and while I cannot speak for him, I’d take UNC; the competitor wants to chase a banner, and he has adjacent ties through that Northeast-Carolina tree.

Draft talk: I’ve got A.J. Dybantsa first, with Cam Boozer and Caleb Wilson right there, but Darrin Peterson is the riddle—you told me to watch him and early he looked like baby Kobe, yet he played in a silo, got banged up, and even mentioned head noise. How should a GM weigh that in a deep class?

The eye test swings, but he crushed us and gets to his spots at his own tempo. If Utah picks first they’re taking Dybantsa given the ownership ties; after that, Peterson’s a classic scorer—more Kobe or DeMar than creator—with a monster body and big-moment wiring, so medicals and family dynamics decide it, and history says college injuries often follow you; if cleared, I’d take him very high.

Let’s land it with your Green Bay run—third in the Horizon in year two after a scramble year one. What’s the one thing you know now that you did not, for a young coach taking a real swing?

Culture beats everything. Build a tight, connected staff, pick a locker-room leader and hold that person most accountable, and cohesion turns an open hand into a fist; we were picked near the bottom, but character and toughness carried us, and schemes matter less than the people you recruit.

Awesome. Go be with your kids—I’m off to dinner. The Volume.