Favorite b-ball teams by state

[CTGoonie]

Haven't seen this posted yet and found it interesting.

By my count I only see 3 ACC states (NY, SC and NC). SEC and B12 dominate.

 

[MattMang23]

I think the thread title is a little misleading. I'm willing to bet UConn is more popular in Massachusetts than Harvard, for instance.

But I do find it interesting that the most popular Massachusetts-based college basketball team is Harvard and not that vaunted program on Nut Hill that carries all of New England.

Other surprising states for me are Washington and North Carolina.

Oh and according to Nelson no one outside of Lexington cares about SEC basketball.

 

[Kolumbo]

Harvard is a shocker. Must be the timing of the poll.
Memphis is a slight surprise. I wonder how close Pitt was to Nova, UMass to Harvard, Rutgers to SHU (HA!)
VCU?

 

[pj]

It looks like they did a national survey over which team located in a state got the most interest nationally. UNC kills Duke within the state of North Carolina but Duke can make up for it in other states. Similarly, Harvard has a national brand, BC does not. Rutgers probably beats Seton Hall in New Jersey but Seton Hall wins nationally. North Dakota State and South Dakota State are winners only because Minnesota, Michigan, Michigan State, etc are not in the competition.

If they did the reverse survey -- which school generates the most interest in a state, regardless of the school's home state -- UConn might win New England except for Rhode Island and New York. In any event, that would be a better reflection of the school's value.

 

[kingdobbs]

I think the thread title is a little misleading. I'm willing to bet UConn is more popular in Massachusetts than Harvard, for instance.

But I do find it interesting that the most popular Massachusetts-based college basketball team is Harvard and not that vaunted program on Nut Hill that carries all of New England.

Other surprising states for me are Washington and North Carolina.

Oh and according to Nelson no one outside of Lexington cares about SEC basketball.

The sample for this must have almost certainly been plurality based, and the coloring done by winner takes all.

That is, let's say of all the citizens in Washington they polled, and that number is 100, if the poll was split 35 for Gonzaga, 33 for Washington, 32 for Wazzou, Gonzaga wins the whole state.

 

[MattMang23]

The sample for this must have almost certainly been plurality based, and the coloring done by winner takes all.

That is, let's say of all the citizens in Washington they polled, and that number is 100, if the poll was split 35 for Gonzaga, 33 for Washington, 32 for Wazzou, Gonzaga wins the whole state.

Right. That's how I envisioned this having been surveyed. I just figured Washington, a state school in a very large market with a somewhat successful history and a member of the unquestioned number one conference on the west coast would trump the small, private school located on the Idaho border. But I suppose recent history has favored Gonzaga and the bandwagoners have taken notice.

 

[pj]

"engagement metrics such as Google search, social media following" -- I doubt these are filtered by state of origin. I think this is mostly a measure of national following, not local following.

 

[Waquoit]

VCU > UVA?

 

[whaler11]

"engagement metrics such as Google search, social media following" -- I doubt these are filtered by state of origin. I think this is mostly a measure of national following, not local following.

Yep. No way is Duke the most popular team in NC. They are a distant third.

 

[NC_Uconn_Fan]

Living in NC (greater Charlotte region), UNC is way more popular that Duke.
I would say...
1. UNC
2. NC State
3. Duke

 

[businesslawyer]

How can this be interesting without knowng the metrics on which it's based? Without knowing that, it's just kids coloring in between the lines.

 

[MattMang23]

I was in Charlotte during the first round of the tourney a few years back. It was like Duke didn't even exist.

 

[MilliniumPrince]

Yep. No way is Duke the most popular team in NC. They are a distant third.

I lived in NC for about 8 years. 2 in the Charlotte Area and 2 in Eastern NC....no way in hell is Duke more popular than UNC. They are probably number two, by a small margin over NC. State. I am not willing to bet Duke is more popular than UNC in the City of Durham.

 

[whaler11]

I lived in NC for about 8 years. 2 in the Charlotte Area and 2 in Eastern NC....no way in hell is Duke more popular than UNC. They are probably number two, by a small margin over NC. State. I am not willing to bet Duke is more popular than UNC in the City of Durham.

I lived in the triangle for a few years. NC State is way more popular than Duke. Just look at the crowds they play to as well.

NCSU has what 20x the local alumni? 30?

 

[MilliniumPrince]

I lived in the triangle for a few years. NC State is way more popular than Duke. Just look at the crowds they play to as well.

NCSU has what 20x the local alumni? 30?

Easily. I was being kind.

 

[TruDomGopher]

Right. That's how I envisioned this having been surveyed. I just figured Washington, a state school in a very large market with a somewhat successful history and a member of the unquestioned number one conference on the west coast would trump the small, private school located on the Idaho border. But I suppose recent history has favored Gonzaga and the bandwagoners have taken notice.

I live in Washington. This is not the kind of sportscentric culture that permeates much of the rest of the country. This is also the place that lost their NBA team. This is the place where there is essentially zero pressure to add the Pac12 network to satellite and cable lineups.

To the extent that people follow sports at all, the bandwagon tendency is always present--in football (for example), Eastern Washington seems on par with UW--and WSU actually seems to have a more loyal following than UW. The Ducks spill over a lot. (Seahawks/NFL is king--seriously, hardly anyone pays attention to college football, much less other collegiate sports.)

Basically, there just isn't a strong sports culture like there is in other parts of the country. For that matter, it's a noticeably weaker sports culture than even Oregon.

Gonzaga has an outsize influence because so many of the professional class in Washington passed through there and that tends to trickle down, and of course, the history.

It's really hard to explain how ambivalent most of the west coast seems to be about sports. A place like Nebraska can fill a stadium with a population base of what? a couple million? A California school, drawing on a population base 10-12 times larger might fill a stadium if they're winning.

The Washington Rabid Sports Fan Association could hold their convention in a telephone booth.

 

[UConnDan97]

Living in NC (greater Charlotte region), UNC is way more popular that Duke.
I would say...
1. UNC
2. NC State
3. Duke

This is what I think too. It was the one state that stood out to me besides Mass. I'm not sure either one is right. Hell, UMass must have more fans than Harvard, and I'm guessing that UConn has more than either one in MA...

 

[IMind]

If Penn State ever got their act together in basketball it would dominate the state. Pitt, Temple, Villanova, St. Joe's, etc. have tepid support outside of their alumni. It's actually pretty amazing that they can't manage to produce a good basketball program.

 

[Antiobserver]

If Penn State ever got their act together in basketball it would dominate the state. Pitt, Temple, Villanova, St. Joe's, etc. have tepid support outside of their alumni. It's actually pretty amazing that they can't manage to produce a good basketball program.

If Penn State cared as much about basketball as they do about a statue of Joe Paterno, they would be a top 25 team every year.