For the first time ever, the women’s NCAA championship basketball game averaged more viewers than the men’s game. This newfound interest in women’s basketball is mostly thanks to a select group of distinguished players and teams.
The two women’s players who have had the most impact on the sport in the last two years are University of Iowa’s Caitlin Clark and Louisiana State University’s Angel Reese.
Clark was the face of college basketball this year, and that includes the men’s game. You could not have a conversation about college basketball without her (and Iowa women’s basketball) being brought up.
Clark rocked the world of basketball at all levels. She has won Big 10 Player of the Year twice, Big 10 all-time scorer, NCAA single-season record for 3-pointers, Best Female College Athlete ESPYS award, and most 30-point games by any man or woman in Division I in the last 25 years. These are just some of the many titles and honors she has received over her four years at Iowa. Clark has also led her team to two back-to-back NCAA championship finals.
Clark and her team played in front of sold –out crowd after sold out crowd, both at home and away games. Every single game the Hawkeyes played at home, in Carver – Hawkeye Arena were sold out. Thirty out of 32 of their away games were played in sold –out arenas. According to the NCAA, teams that hosted Iowa saw a 150% increase in attendance compared to their other home games. On average, Hawkeye fans were traveling 32% farther for away games to see this wonder of a team to play.
Clark’s number, 22, was officially retired at the University of Iowa, the third in the program’s history.
Another common program that was brought up in conversation was LSU. And more specifically LSU’s #10 Angel Reese.
Reese, affectionately known as “Bayou Barbie” by LSU fans, has also changed the world of basketball. Reese transferred to LSU her junior year and quickly became a standout in the program. During her first season with the Tigers they won the NCAA championship, a game played against Clark and the Hawkeyes. She has won SEC Player of the year, ESPY for Best Breakthrough Athlete, Sporting News athlete of the week and First team AlI-SEC, among others.
Reese has also highlighted issues of racial discrimination and sexualization against Black female athletes. During 2023 March Madness, Clark did the John Cena “you can’t see me” hand gesture after the Hawks win against Louisville. Clark, who is white, faced little to no backlash over the gesture. When Reese did the same in the championship game, she was called “a f-king idiot” by journalist Keith Olbermann and “classless” by CBS sports reporter Danny Kanell. The LSU team was then called “dirty debutantes” and “villains” in a published Los Angeles Times story.
The situation went so far, people began making explicit Al pictures with the star’s face. In a press conference after the championship game, Reese went on to say, “I’m too hood, I’m too ghetto. You told me that all year. But when other people do it, y’all don’t say nothing. So, this is for the girls that look like me, that want to speak up on what they believe in. It’s unapologetically you. It was bigger than me tonight.”
Both stars have been able to make money through their name, image, and likeness. Clark is sponsored by companies like Nike, State Farm, Gatorade, and Hy-Vee. Her NIL deals are worth around $53.5 million, ranking fourth among all college athletes for earnings. Reese boasts brands like Amazon, Calvin Klein, Outback Steakhouse, and Reebok. Her deals are worth about $1.7 million, putting her eighth in earnings.
Women officially had their first NCAA championship game in 1982, 43 years after the first men’s championship. Only their games were not advertised or conducted anything like the men’s.
Prior to a 2021 gender equality review of the NCAA championships, the tournament could not use “March Madness” branding like the men’s. Stark differences were clear between the men’s and women’s games such as tools and incentives for recruiting, differences in training facilities, and athletes marketing themselves and getting commensurate sales.
Two years post equality review, women’s basketball’s viewership is up 459%. The women’s championship game averaged 18.7 million viewers, peaking around the end of the game at 24 million. The men’s fell over four million short, averaging 14.8 million viewers.
Both Clark and Reese were drafted into the Women’s National Basketball League in April, Clark by the Indiana Fever, and Reese by the Chicago Sky. Just them getting drafted has caused some major changes in the WNBA already.
In the days and weeks after Clark’s draft, Fever tickets have gone up dramatically. The median ticket prices range anywhere from $233 to $354, according to Gametime. Ticket prices for a Fever vs. Sky game, another Calrk vs. Reese match-up, in June have tickets averaging prices well over $1,000.
Women’s sports are ever evolving, and it has been so incredible to see female athletes finally getting the recognition they have deserved for decades.
