If the NCAA ever needed proof that it made a multi-decades-long mistake of downplaying women’s sports, look no further than the TV ratings for Monday’s Elite Eight matchup between Iowa and LSU.
In a rematch of 2023’s national title game, NCAA all-time leading scorer Caitlin Clark rose to the moment and led Iowa to the Final Four after dropping 41 points against the defending champion LSU Tigers.
And just a preposterous amount of people watched it all unfold.
According to ESPN, Monday’s game averaged 12.3 million viewers to make it the most-watched college basketball game ever (men and women) on ESPN platforms. It was also the most-watched women’s basketball game on record.
To put that figure into perspective, the NBA Finals — which aired on the more accessible ABC — averaged 11.64 million viewers. The 2023 World Series averaged 9.08 million viewers on Fox and didn’t have a single game average more than 12 million viewers. So, yeah, this was an incredible number for ESPN.
College hoops fans were justifiably thrilled about the news. This Final Four should be something else.
