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CBS Had To Replace Kenny Smith For Friday's NCAA Tournament Coverage
If you watched CBS' morning coverage of the NCAA Tournament then you might have noticed a different person sitting in Kenny Smith's seat.
Former NBA and NCAA champion Renee Montgomery joined Adam Zucker and Charles Barkley at the desk, with Zucker noting that Smith is "under the weather" for Day Two of the NCAA Tournament's first round. Last night Smith went home early, leaving the studio just before the end of the Howard-Michigan game. Whatever it was must have been bad to keep him at home overnight.
But Barkley, Smith's longtime broadcaster partner, had some fun with the whole situation and joked that Smith was probably just taking the day off to have some fun on a beach somwhere.
Why Renee Montgomery is still filling in for Kenny Smith on CBS
March Madness fans watching CBS Sports' coverage of the 2026 NCAA men's tournament probably noticed longtime analyst Kenny Smith's continued absence on the dais.
WNBA great Renee Montgomery continued to fill in for Smith on Saturday, with the network saying Smith was sick on Friday as he missed that day's March Madness coverage.
Montgomery always does a great job whenever she's covering basketball in her various broadcasting duties. However, we hope Smith gets to feeling better sooner than later so he can get back to the tournament!
We'll see when Smith can return from whatever ailment he's got that's keeping him away from coverage.
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Charles Barkley issues message to Kenny Smith as March Madness host replaced after abruptly leaving studio
Kenny Smith was notably absent from NCAA Tournament action on Friday.
On Thursday, Smith’s alma mater, UNC, fell 82-78 to VCU as the 11th-seeded Rams overcame a 19-point deficit to clinch an incredible come-from-behind upset win in the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
Shortly after, Smith, a former standout college basketball star for the Tar Heels, vanished from the CBS desk, leading some to joke that he couldn't handle the loss.
“Is he under the weather or crying about the UNC loss?” one user joked.
“That’s funny. Kenny seemed fine when Siena was winning. What a pro!” another remarked.
However, a day later, as the Round of 64 coverage got underway, fans couldn't help but notice a major change as two-time WNBA champion Renee Montgomery had replaced 'The Jet' on the main desk.
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