Current:Home > NewsCaitlin Clark, Iowa set conference tournament viewership record after beating Nebraska-VaTradeCoin
Caitlin Clark, Iowa set conference tournament viewership record after beating Nebraska
View Date:2025-01-10 09:32:54
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! (45323)
Related
- 'Climate change is real': New York parks employee killed as historic drought fuels blazes
- 49ers vs. Jets Monday Night Football live updates: Odds, predictions, how to watch
- Harvey Weinstein rushed from Rikers Island to hospital for emergency heart surgery
- Dak Prescott beat Jerry Jones at his own game – again – and that doesn't bode well for Cowboys
- Princess Kate to host annual Christmas carol service following cancer treatment
- Americans’ inflation-adjusted incomes rebounded to pre-pandemic levels last year
- Kentucky shooting suspect faces 5 counts of attempted murder; search intensifies
- Kentucky bourbon icon Jimmy Russell celebrates his 70th anniversary at Wild Turkey
- Over 1.4 million Honda, Acura vehicles subject of US probe over potential engine failure
- Dakota Johnson Thought Energy Drink Celsius Was, Um, a Vitamin—And the Result Is Chaos
Ranking
- Mississippi Valley State football player Ryan Quinney dies in car accident
- Judge tosses suit seeking declaration that Georgia officials don’t have to certify election results
- When does 'The Voice' start? Season 26 date, time and Snoop Dogg's coaching debut
- Don Lemon, with a new book on faith, examines religion in politics: 'It's disturbing'
- Glen Powell responds to rumor that he could replace Tom Cruise in 'Mission: Impossible'
- Mark Hamill, LeVar Burton and more mourn James Earl Jones
- Head of state children’s cabinet named New Mexico’s new public education secretary
- Jennifer Coolidge Shares How She Honestly Embraces Aging
Recommendation
-
Trump ally Steve Bannon blasts ‘lawfare’ as he faces New York trial after federal prison stint
-
'Hotter than it's ever been': How this 93-year-old copes with Phoenix's 100-degree heat
-
The iPhone 16, new AirPods and other highlights from Apple’s product showcase
-
Jennifer Coolidge Shares How She Honestly Embraces Aging
-
The White Stripes drop lawsuit against Donald Trump over 'Seven Nation Army' use
-
Black Eyed Peas to debut AI member inspired by 'empress' Taylor Swift at Vegas residency
-
Cash aid for new moms: What to know about the expanding program in Michigan
-
Ryan Seacrest debuts as 'Wheel of Fortune' host with Vanna White by his side