Current:Home > MarketsCaitlin Clark, Iowa set conference tournament viewership record after beating Nebraska -Prosperity Pathways
Caitlin Clark, Iowa set conference tournament viewership record after beating Nebraska
View
Date:2025-04-24 18:13:39
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! (986)
Related
- B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
- Brittney and Cherelle Griner reveal baby's name and videos from baby shower
- This Week’s Landmark Transmission Rule Forces Utilities to Take the Long View
- Hailey Bieber’s Unexpected Pregnancy Craving Is No Glazed Donut—But She Doesn’t Want You to Judge
- South Korea's acting president moves to reassure allies, calm markets after Yoon impeachment
- Angie Harmon sues Instacart, delivery driver who allegedly shot dog Oliver
- Lisa Vanderpump Addresses Rumors Vanderpump Rules Is Canceled Amid Hiatus
- Why Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter Isn’t Nominated at 2024 ACM Awards
- Jamie Foxx gets stitches after a glass is thrown at him during dinner in Beverly Hills
- Air quality in several US states threatened by growing Canada wildfires: See map
Ranking
- Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
- An Arizona judge helped revive an 1864 abortion law. His lawmaker wife joined Democrats to repeal it
- This Week’s Landmark Transmission Rule Forces Utilities to Take the Long View
- What to know about a bus crash that killed 8 Mexican farmworkers in Florida
- Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
- Barge hits Texas bridge connecting Galveston and Pelican Island, causing partial collapse and oil spill
- Honda recall: Over 187,000 Honda Ridgeline trucks recalled over rearview camera issue
- The ACM Awards are on streaming only this year. Here's how to watch the country awards
Recommendation
House passes bill to add 66 new federal judgeships, but prospects murky after Biden veto threat
US cites ‘misuse’ of AI by China and others in closed-door bilateral talks
When does 'The Golden Bachelorette' start? What we know so far about Season 1 premiere, start time
Best Luxury Candles That Will Make Your Home Smell Really, Really Good
Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
Dean McDermott Goes Instagram Official With Girlfriend Lily Calo After Tori Spelling Split
These ACM Awards Red Carpet Looks Will Impress You Much
Lisa Vanderpump Addresses Rumors Vanderpump Rules Is Canceled Amid Hiatus