Current:Home > StocksCaitlin Clark, Iowa set conference tournament viewership record after beating Nebraska -WealthRoots Academy
Caitlin Clark, Iowa set conference tournament viewership record after beating Nebraska
NovaQuant View
Date:2025-04-06 17:56:59
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! (35765)
Related
- Tom Holland's New Venture Revealed
- See photos, videos of barge that struck Pelican Island bridge, causing Texas oil spill
- New Hampshire Senate passes bill to restrict transgender athletes in grades 5-12
- Harris accepts CBS News' vice presidential debate invitation
- Stamford Road collision sends motorcyclist flying; driver arrested
- WNBA says all teams will charter by Tuesday, but rollout has been clunky
- LA County unleashes sterile mosquitoes to control the population. Here's how it works.
- NRA kicks off annual meeting as board considers successor to longtime leader Wayne LaPierre
- Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
- Drake, Kendrick Lamar and More Score 2024 BET Awards Nominations: See the Complete List
Ranking
- DeepSeek: Did a little known Chinese startup cause a 'Sputnik moment' for AI?
- Kelsea Ballerini Channels Kate Hudson in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days During 2024 ACM Awards
- Driver killed after tank depressurizes at Phoenix semiconductor facility that’s under construction
- Chris Pratt's Stunt Double Tony McFarr Dead at 47
- Realtor group picks top 10 housing hot spots for 2025: Did your city make the list?
- Man convicted of murder in Detroit teen’s death despite body still missing in landfill
- They survived Maui's deadly wildfires. Now many are suffering from food insecurity and deteriorating health.
- Widespread power outages, risk of tornadoes as Houston area gets pummeled again by thunderstorms
Recommendation
Backstage at New York's Jingle Ball with Jimmy Fallon, 'Queer Eye' and Meghan Trainor
New Kansas abortion clinic will open to help meet demand from restrictive neighboring states
Why TikToker Xandra Pohl Is Sparking Romance Rumors With Kansas City Chiefs Player Louis Rees-Zamm
US military says first aid shipment has been driven across a newly built US pier into the Gaza Strip
The city of Chicago is ordered to pay nearly $80M for a police chase that killed a 10
Powerball winning numbers for May 15 drawing: Jackpot rises to $77 million
Maria Shriver Calls Out Harrison Butker for Demeaning Graduation Speech
Man smoked marijuana oil, took medication before deadly Florida crash, affidavit says