In 1992 Gampel held 8,241. UConn sold out every game at GP. If the capacity was higher then the gap would be even higher in the past.
The smallest crowd in Hartford was for Wake in the ACC challenge which was a separate ticket. It drew 13,169. Every other game in Hartford drew >16,000 even CCSU, Hartford, Furman and Yale.
In 2011 coming of an NC. UConn drew a crowd of 10,726 for Maine. 11,397 for Coppin St.
In 2010 ranked number 4 they drew 11,255 for Harvard and 12,599 for USF. Ranked 14th they got 14,622 for Marquette.
Can you answer a simple question Upstater. Is 16,000>11,000? Maybe that is your issue, you think that is a false statement?
I'll start off with the total nonsense first: If UConn averaged 16k in Hartford back then and 11k in Gampel, it's total average would be at least 14k since 2/3rds of the games were at HCC. But it never happened.
Now, without a doubt, increased capacity at Gampel increased attendance. That's obvious. The question is by how much.
Now, let's pretend the 2k gain in seats props the numbers in the early to mid 2000s and makes them look great compared to the 1990s, when more capacity was utilized.
But, when you look at the actual average attendance, it FELL after Gampel was expanded. In 1997 (first season of expanded Gampel), tix dropped from 12,911 to 12,578. They increased seating by 2k, and lost an average of 450 fans.
A year later (with the increased capacity) tix went to 13,007. So, a net gain of almost 100 tix. In the first two years after the expansion of Gampel in the late 1990s, the average attendance number dropped.
I will grant that you're right that the expansion of Gampel contributed to the increased attendance in the early and mid 2000s. I don't think the impact is nearly as pronounced as you assume though. Increased capacity did not lead to increased attendance in 1997 and 1998.