Current:Home > reviewsCaitlin Clark, Iowa set conference tournament viewership record after beating Nebraska -MoneyBase
Caitlin Clark, Iowa set conference tournament viewership record after beating Nebraska
View
Date:2025-04-24 14:16:42
Fans can't get enough of Caitlin Clark.
Iowa's Big Ten championship win over Nebraska on Sunday was the most-watched conference tournament game on any network in women's college basketball history, CBS Sports reported on Tuesday.
The network said that the game, where the Hawkeyes won 94-89 for their third straight Big Ten title behind 34 points and 12 assists from Clark, had an average of 3.021 million viewers. The audience peaked when the game went into overtime and 4.450 million people tuned in.
The matchup was the most-watched game of the day, which also featured the SEC championship where South Carolina outlasted LSU after a scuffle in the fourth quarter to win their eighth conference title in 10 years.
The Athletic's Richard Deitsch compared the numbers between the women's Big Ten championship and the storied rivalry between Duke and North Carolina's men's basketball teams. The Blue Devils and Tar Heels faced off on Saturday in the regular season finale. North Carolina won at Cameron Indoor, clinching the regular season ACC crown. Deitsch said that game, which was aired on ESPN, had an average of 3.076 million viewers.
WOMEN'S BRACKET MADNESS: Enter USA TODAY's women's tournament bracket contest for a chance at $1 million prize.
The Big Ten Network also reported that Iowa amassed more than 1 million viewers for both its semifinal and quarterfinal games in the conference tournament. It's the first time the network has seen two women's games pass the 1 million mark. The 1.075 million fans that tuned in for the semifinal against Michigan made the game the most-watched women's sports event and second overall in the network's history.
Clark − with other stars such as LSU's Angel Reese, former South Carolina star Aliyah Boston and Stanford's Cameron Brink − have helped elevate the profile of women's basketball. Last year's Final Four saw record viewership on ESPN with an average of 5.5 million and peak of 6.6 million people watching Iowa versus South Carolina. When Clark broke Pete Maravich's all-time scoring record earlier this month in a game against Ohio State, an average of 3.4 million fans tuned in, making it the most-watched women's college basketball game in FOX's history.
The Hawkeyes clinched a berth in the NCAA tournament with the championship win. They will learn their seeding for the competition on Selection Sunday.
veryGood! (88)
Related
- Selena Gomez's "Weird Uncles" Steve Martin and Martin Short React to Her Engagement
- Grand jury indicts Illinois man on hate crime, murder charges in attack on Muslim mom, son
- Judge in Trump's New York fraud trial upholds $10,000 fine for violating gag order
- Judge finds former Ohio lawmaker guilty of domestic violence in incident involving his wife
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- 5 Things podcast: Anti-science rhetoric heavily funded, well-organized. Can it be stopped?
- Exclusive: Mother of 6-year-old Muslim boy killed in alleged hate crime speaks out
- Arizona Diamondbacks take series of slights into surprise World Series against Texas Rangers
- What to watch: O Jolie night
- General Motors and Stellantis in talks with United Auto Workers to reach deals that mirror Ford’s
Ranking
- Rylee Arnold Shares a Long
- And the First Celebrity Voted Off House of Villains Was...
- Britney Spears Reveals What Exes Justin Timberlake and Kevin Federline Ruined for Her
- GDP surged 4.9% in the third quarter, defying the Fed's rate hikes
- Meet the volunteers risking their lives to deliver Christmas gifts to children in Haiti
- AP PHOTOS: Pan American Games bring together Olympic hopefuls from 41 nations
- Israel strikes outskirts of Gaza City during second ground raid in as many days
- Judge finds former Ohio lawmaker guilty of domestic violence in incident involving his wife
Recommendation
Federal hiring is about to get the Trump treatment
Maine passed a law to try to prevent mass shootings. Some say more is needed after Lewiston killings
And the First Celebrity Voted Off House of Villains Was...
Tennessee attorney general sues federal government over abortion rule blocking funding
The FTC says 'gamified' online job scams by WhatsApp and text on the rise. What to know.
TikTok returns to the campaign trail but not everyone thinks it's a good idea
Home prices and rents have both soared. So which is the better deal?
State Department struggles to explain why American citizens still can’t exit Gaza