Hawkeyes’ Caitlin Clark: ‘People are more excited about the women’s side than the men’s side’
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After the Hawkeyes defeated Holy Cross on Friday to advance to the round of 32, Caitlin Clark was asked about her impact specifically in the NCAA tournament.
The ratings were just released for this weekend’s contests. Iowa’s win over Holy Cross topped 3.2 million viewers on ABC, which breaks a record for non-Final Four viewership. That record lasted all of 48 hours, as Iowa’s win over West Virginia in the round of 32 averaged 4.9 million viewers.
Back to Clark’s response — she gave a long-winded answer that caught plenty of attention.
“Just the crowds at our games, but also just like the people screaming and, like, wanting our autographs and screaming my name constantly. I think that’s something that really never gets old or something you never take for granted,” Clark said.
“But I think just in general the excitement around this tournament, it’s super cool. People are more excited about the women’s side than the men’s side,” Clark said. “That’s obviously something that’s never been the case before and it’s cool to see how it’s evolved.”
Caitlin reflects on her impact on the women's tournament:
"People are more excited about the women's side than the men's side…" pic.twitter.com/7RJck9Xaz3— Blake Hornstein (@BlakeHornTV) March 23, 2024
The men’s tournament itself averaged 9.7 million viewers. Much of that involves the marketing of bracketology and familiarity.
But, to Caitlin’s point, the women’s game offers a generational player and a trio of stars around the country that have become household names like Angel Reese, Paige Bueckers and JuJu Watkins.
It will be very interesting to see how ratings change when we potentially see an Iowa vs LSU rematch in the Elite Eight. Or a Clark vs. Bueckers matchup in the Final Four. The women’s game is oozing with potential, and it’s evolved exponentially since just a few years ago.
“I first started this when I was a freshman — like, we couldn’t even use the March Madness branding — and now to see this and really it’s just taken to a-whole-nother level,” Clark said. “I expected it to continue to grow this year and I think that’s the coolest thing for myself.”
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