Charles Barkley was caught completely off guard while on the air Friday for a March Madness halftime show.
Barkley was on a halftime panel alongside Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, and Clark Kellogg for the first-round matchup between Xavier and Illinois.
The 6th-seeded Illini led the 11th-seeded Musketeers 40-35 at the half. Johnson hit Barkley with the most basic question to start off their discussion: what was Chuck’s biggest takeaway from the first half?”
“Well, I think. Umm, that’s a good question,” Barkley said while looking down at his game notes.
Charles Barkley at an NCAA Tournament postgame show
Ernie Johnson asked Charles Barkley what his biggest takeaway from the first half of Xavier-Illinois was.
Chuck was not expecting that question and was unable to answer it.
He was watching Bryant-Michigan St. pic.twitter.com/HQduujDBg5
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 22, 2025