OT: Pretending Women's BBall doesn't matter

[upstater]

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-bas...d-celebration-cardinals-national-championship

Most fans pretend the sport is irrelevant--until their team experiences some success.

The citywide party could be repeated Tuesday night if the Cardinals' women's team beats Connecticut for the NCAA championship in New Orleans.
"It's huge," said freshman Paul DeNeve. "We have not only won tonight but the women's team plays tomorrow."

It's not just this one kid, but I've been hearing a lot of this lately.

 

[HuskyBballFan]

Well unfortunately for us, it certainly doesn't matter in the world of conference realignment.

 

[intlzncster]

Well unfortunately for us, it certainly doesn't matter in the world of conference realignment.

 

[BobbyPs Ghost]

Is your irony intentional?

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-bas...d-celebration-cardinals-national-championship

Most fans pretend the sport is irrelevant--until their team experiences some success.




It's not just this one kid, but I've been hearing a lot of this lately.

 

[amory]

I dunno if it'll ever be popular with the masses, probably not. But the sport is headed in the right direction. Louisville making the championship game as a 5 seed was huge.

As far as people feeling compelled to scream from the rooftops about how irrelevant women's basketball is, it's not surprising. I mean, if it's not your team winning all the championships it's great that you can fall back on claiming the entire game doesn't matter.

That's why the level of competition absolutely has to increase if there's ever going to be any buyin from the general public.

 

[upstater]

Is your irony intentional?

Many UConn fans have been interested in women's bball for some time.

 

[BobbyPs Ghost]

Of course they have - that's where the irony kicks in. How many were interested before UConn began having sucess?

Many UConn fans have been interested in women's bball for some time.

 

[upstater]

Of course they have - that's where the irony kicks in. How many were interested before UConn began having sucess?

Not the same thing. Women's bball F4 wasn't shown on ESPN back in the 1980s when Geno started.

Isn't it kind of like comparing today's men's game to UCLA's heyday? Outside UCLA, people didn't care nearly as much back then. By the time Magic Johnson and Larry Bird came around, that's when college bball hit the bigtime, the national mania you see today. Before then, it was a fringe sport.

You're probably right about the underlying attitude toward women's bball (which is my main point anyway) but UConn's rise coincided with the rise in the sport, so it's hard to prove.

 

[Deepster]

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-bas...d-celebration-cardinals-national-championship

Most fans pretend the sport is irrelevant--until their team experiences some success.




It's not just this one kid, but I've been hearing a lot of this lately.

I don't think that "most fans" pretend it's irrelevant. I think most people, like myself, truly feel it's irrelevant.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

If it matters, at all, please explain how by far the most dominant program has been left out.

I mean, do we need to win 10 titles for it to matter?

 

[BobbyPs Ghost]

I agree with what you're saying historically however, I think the premise of the thread was that fans of specific schools don't give a crap about women's basketball until their school's women begin to experience sucess. I don't disagree with that premise either but, it was kind of a dig at UofL, and my point is I doubt UConn was any different before GA or UT was before PS.

 

[upstater]

I agree with what you're saying historically however, I think the premise of the thread was that fans of specific schools don't give a crap about women's basketball until their school's women begin to experience sucess. I don't disagree with that premise either but, it was kind of a dig at UofL, and my point is I doubt UConn was any different before GA or UT was before PS.

I agree UConn would be no different. In a way, that was my point as well.

 

[upstater]

I don't think that "most fans" pretend it's irrelevant. I think most people, like myself, truly feel it's irrelevant.

I read boards all the time with people saying it's irrelevant. Those same people will go on an on about women's field hockey and men's wrestling. As soon as their school challenges in a sport, suddenly it's relevant. There are people who truly just don't care. I'd say for a much bigger chunk, they care when they win.

It's the same thing as listening to the anti-soccer yahoos. OK, Jim Rome, you hate soccer. I get it. It's a faux sport. Now go on talking about golf and tennis and all the other minor sports you are "thrilled" to watch!

 

[upstater]

If it matters, at all, please explain how by far the most dominant program has been left out.

I mean, do we need to win 10 titles for it to matter?

Did I say it's the only thing that matters?

Anything that pulls the ratings on ESPN matters. Anything that makes good $$$ for a school matters.

TV and money matter.

 

[intlzncster]

Of course they have - that's where the irony kicks in. How many were interested before UConn began having sucess?

Not many people were interested in UConn Mens hoops until JC started building it. Once the Dream Season happened, it was all systems go. Just the nature of sports for most people.

 

[Deepster]

I read boards all the time with people saying it's irrelevant. Those same people will go on an on about women's field hockey and men's wrestling. As soon as their school challenges in a sport, suddenly it's relevant. There are people who truly just don't care. I'd say for a much bigger chunk, they care when they win.

It's the same thing as listening to the anti-soccer yahoos. OK, Jim Rome, you hate soccer. I get it. It's a faux sport. Now go on talking about golf and tennis and all the other minor sports you are "thrilled" to watch!

Whatever point you're trying to make is unclear and chock full of generalizations. In the past, i have turned down free season tickets to the women's team at both HCC and Gampel. I don't care that they've won titles. I have no interest in going, or talking about them to other people and I don't think I'm alone.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Did I say it's the only thing that matters?

Anything that pulls the ratings on ESPN matters. Anything that makes good $ for a school matters.

TV and money matter.

No, you didn't say it was the only thing. You said it matters more than people think. That's wrong.

It doesn't matter. At all.

If it mattered even a fraction, do you think the biggest brand in the whole sport would be left on the outside looking in?

 

[Yonick]

Few were interested in UConn's womens hoops until the Rebecca Lobo team. Heck, they made the final four before Rebecca arrived in Storrs and few really cared at that time.
But, UConn has been a bastion of womens hoops throughout the country. Unfortunately few places outside CT care about womens hoops. But, over the past 15 years, the sport has made great strides. I would rate womens collegiate hoops 3rd behind football and men's hoops in fan interest in college sports. Right now womens hoops is a distant 3rd to mens hoops in popularity. I don't see that changing.
Having said that, the collegiate football bowl season pales in comparison to March madness.

 

[CL82]

I know I really didn't care about it until 1995. I can remember lifting on the old universal in the fieldhouse while games were going on. If I had to wait for a station to clear, I look in for a minute. The weights clanging were louder than the crowd noise.

We've come a long way.

 

[upstater]

No, you didn't say it was the only thing. You said it matters more than people think. That's wrong.

It doesn't matter. At all.

If it mattered even a fraction, do you think the biggest brand in the whole sport would be left on the outside looking in?

We disagree. If you think TV eyeballs and money doesn't matter at all, this should be end of discussion.

I mean, UConn women's bball got top ratings on a weeknight on SNY not only for sports, not only for cable shows, but top rating for ALL of television including cable (and American Idol, and all that jazz...)

That's good money.

The idea that this alone should be enough to get UConn into a major conference is crazy.

 

[upstater]

Whatever point you're trying to make is unclear and chock full of generalizations. In the past, i have turned down free season tickets to the women's team at both HCC and Gampel. I don't care that they've won titles. I have no interest in going, or talking about them to other people and I don't think I'm alone.

I allowed that there are people who just don't care. I also said some people protest too much!

 

[zls44]

Anything other than FB or MBB "doesn't matter"- unless you're good at it. Then you get defensive and tell everyone else to piss off.

See: Syracuse Lacrosse, BC Hockey, UConn WBB.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

We disagree. If you think TV eyeballs and money doesn't matter at all, this should be end of discussion.

I mean, UConn women's bball got top ratings on a weeknight on SNY not only for sports, not only for cable shows, but top rating for ALL of television including cable (and American Idol, and all that jazz...)

That's good money.

The idea that this alone should be enough to get UConn into a major conference is crazy.

There's no way in hell, a UConn women's basketball game on SNY drew higher ratings than American Idol on Fox.

Unless this is some informal poll you did at the Bristol Senior Center, then I call BS.

 

[zls44]

There's no way in hell, a UConn women's basketball game on SNY drew higher ratings than American Idol on Fox.

Unless this is some informal poll you did at the Bristol Senior Center, then I call BS.

http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/011113aac.html

NEW YORK – On the heels of UConn’s victory over Georgetown, SNY, the official television home of the UConn Huskies Women’s basketball program, today announced that the game averaged an 8.52 household rating – the network’s highest rating of the season. This ratings benchmark also signifies the highest household rating in nearly two years for the program in the Hartford-New Haven DMA (UConn-Syracuse, 9.1 household rating on 2-28-11). In addition, the game ranked as the #1 program in its time period – beating all competitive sports programming airing in the market – including ESPN’s NBA Double Header.

UConn-Georgetown on SNY also topped all network prime time series last night in the Hartford-New Haven DMA – except ABC’s Modern Family (9.05 household rating).

 

[ConnHuskBask]

He didn't say Hartford-New Haven market.

I knew he couldn't have meant nationally, but was assuming NYC.