This week saw famed ESPN broadcaster Dick Vitale return to the booth following his October lymphoma diagnosis and ongoing chemo treatments. And he wound up getting to call a spectacular game Friday, the 2-3 Dayton Flyers’ buzzer-beating 74-73 win over the 4-0 No. 4 Kansas Jayhawks in the ESPN Events Invitational semifinal in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. That shot, from Mustapha Amzil (who grabbed the ball following a blocked layup from Malachi Smith), was the only basket Amzil made from the field all day, but it came at a great time. Here’s that call from Vitale:
Dick Vitale calling buzzer beater upsets>>>> pic.twitter.com/6IIfmf03Tx
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 26, 2021
“Oh my god! Oh my god! It went down! Look at the bedlam! Look at the bedlam! I can’t believe it!” The passion there from Vitale illustrates just how pumped up he still gets for college basketball, and it drew a lot of praise on Twitter as well.
So glad to have Dick Vitale back. https://t.co/7HplPDSi65
— Brian Smith (@BlameBrianSmith) November 26, 2021
So happy Dick Vitale is back in college basketball – happy he took that time for his health, he sounds phenomenal and his call on the buzzer beater in Kansas-Dayton was great
— Amit Fudim (@AmitFudim) November 26, 2021
The call from Dick Vitale here is incredible https://t.co/Sb23mhQYDt
— Jason Boleman (@jasonboleman_) November 26, 2021
So glad to see DickieV back calling college basketball last week , it was not the same viewing experience without you @DickVitale https://t.co/9Kvv51476w
— Patrice Baugh (@Triczee) November 26, 2021
When aliens return to Earth, Dick Vitale should be unanimously selected as the human to greet them. https://t.co/KDbUsIw5Ia
— Jake (@JakeAndBall) November 26, 2021
That was Dayton’s first win over a top-5 team since they beat then-No. 3 DePaul 72-71 back in February of 1984. And it led to a great reaction from Amzil afterwards, too, as David Jablonski of The Dayton Daily News relays:
“It was great,” Amzil said. “I had to watch the ball bounce in and down. It’s hard to describe. It’s surreal. It’s a great feeling. I saw the clock when I was driving. I was about to kick it out, but there was just one second so I just had to take the shot.”
It sure worked out that he took the shot. And this was another fun moment in Vitale’s return to the ESPN broadcast booth. He received a standing ovation pre-game, and he was the perfect voice to call that finish.
