And next year they will go back to having nobody watch. Caitlin Clark was the draw.
Well, the game was on TBS and not CBS. I didn't watch it because I don't have cable.
Got home late due to eclipse traffic jams everywhere. Put on CBS…..not on. Checked ESPN……nothing. Figured I missed it. Did some stuff around house, got online to see who won…..and saw that it started at 9:20 and was on TNT. By the time I got it on it was in the second half.🤷🏾♂️
Especially for kids. No need for it to start so late. It doesn’t help to build a fan base among younger kids.
The first few rounds of the Tournament have become almost like a national holiday and is at a time when very little of importance is happening in the sports world. Therefore, those games are able to overcome the nameless faces on almost every college team these days. However, the anonymity of almost all of these college teams, along with the ridiculous starting time and the channel on which the game is broadcast, has to have a negative effect on the final game.
It is getting kinda crazy to find sports on TV these days. You have to push instead of pull. In other words, sports used to be pushed to you and it was impossible to NOT know what was on and when. Today with hundreds of channels and streaming, it is tough to find (even if you know) an event is on. Often, it just isn't worth it. Last night, for example, at 10pm I found the US women's soccer team playing Canada in some kind of championship game. I had no idea it was being played. It ended up being a great game. Canada got a late penalty kick goal on a very soft call. USA won in penalty kicks.
Agreed....but I'd add name recognition. The good players are gone to the NBA when most fans are just starting to know who they are. If it isn't PSU, I am curious about a player. That is what Caitlin Clark did. She got really famous last year and became a superstar. So this year, she was the draw. There wasn't a college player, men's, outside of Edey, that I knew.
All good points. I know there isn't much that can be done about it but both the NBA and NHL championship series are played in June. North of the Mason Dixon, the last thing I want to do it watch sports when we've been waiting for good weather for six months. Both the regular season and the expanded playoff formats are crazy long. It is like having to eat cheesecake for breakfast, lunch and dinner for a week. The first few bites were great but by the time you get to the end, you'd rather eat a simple ham sandwich.
As a huge hockey fan, I have to admit that even I'm tired of the playoffs by the time the Final series starts. Two months to decide a champion is way too long and it's absurd for a winter sport to end in the middle of June or later.
And playing every other night for two months is demanding a ton of time from fans. And as Obli pointed out….. not in May and June.
Back in the 70s, there actually were byes in the NHL playoffs for the best teams and the first series for all of the other teams were best of threes. Even into the 80s, the first round of the playoffs only were best of fives. The NHL and NBA never are going to go back to best of five series because those games mean too much money. God, the NBA even has play-in games now just to get into the playoffs.
nope. I don't pay attention during the regular season with the exception of PSU. So I'll see a few PSU games and against their opponents. But watching UConn during the regular season is like watching Elon play St. Johns. I just don't care.
It's funny that you mentioned him, because I saw him in a commercial on Monday night. I watched UNC a lot this past season, so that is one of the few teams in which I knew a lot of their players.
tldr...here is the only line from the article you need.
Yep, the NCAA believed they could make deals to put the game on cable and everyone would still watch. Glad they look somewhat foolish.
How so? The ratings were higher this season (for a game on cable) than for last season (game was on network TV, CBS).
Exactly how it went for me. I haven't watched an NBA game in 10 years. Hard to understand why people that wouldn't have completed high school believe their political insights warrent being pushed to the fans they have due to their abilites on a basketall court.
My favorite time of year...when the kids were younger I'd watch all night as doom as they went to bed. Now it's 7pm until I'm too tired lol.
UConn is a blue blood, now 6 NCs in 25 years but they don't draw like a Duke or UNC or Kansas or Kentucky.
UCONN is absolutely a blue blood. More titles than Duke, Kansas and Indiana. Currently tied with UNC at 3rd most with 6. Do they move the ratings needle? Probably not, but they have been the best basketball program in the country period over the last 25 years, and it’s not particularly close.
The Kenpom era spans the last 28 seasons, and UConn is at 10th in his program rankings over that span (although this season hasn't been incorporated yet)...so, I definitely wouldn't say it's not close.
Uconn is a very good program but like you said they don’t move the needle, Blue Bloods move the needle as well. How many uconn fans do you see outside of the northeast? Blue Bloods fans are all over the country.
Facts. My 12 year old wanted to watch it. No chance he's staying up for a 9:20 START time on a school night. Didn't even bother turning it on in our house.
AHh, good parenting. Thats hard to find these days.
