Week after week, women's college hoops is besting its own viewership records. This most recent one, however, should hold up for a bit longer.
To likely no one's surprise, Caitlin Clark and Iowa drew in a record audience for their title game against undefeated South Carolina.
It's the third straight game and second consecutive national championship in which Iowa has set a new ratings record. Win or lose, this was Clark's final collegiate game before she joins the WNBA.
The game also featured undefeated South Carolina, who went on to become the first undefeated national champion since UConn in 2016. This also served as a revenge game for the Gamecocks after falling at the hands of Clark and Iowa in last year's Final Four.
South Carolina won the national championship 87-75, its third in program history, but regardless of who took home the title, viewers were dialed in to watch the action.
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Iowa-South Carolina March Madness ratings
The Iowa vs. South Carolina national championship saw 18.7 million people tuned in on ESPN, smashing the previous record Iowa and UConn set two days prior in the Final Four.
It's not just the most-watched women's college hoops game, but the most-watched basketball (men's or women's, college or pro) game since 2019. The viewership peaked at 24 million.
Furthermore, Iowa-South Carolina drew in more viewers than every sporting event other than football and the Olympics since 2019.
💥 New viewership record is set! 💥
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) April 8, 2024
18.7 MILLION people watched the Iowa-South Carolina title game on Sunday.
Peaked at 24 (!!) million viewers. WOW. pic.twitter.com/37vOwX7Bv0
Here's how the Iowa-South Carolina national championship stacks up against the average viewership of each of the major sports' most recent championship games.
- Super Bowl: 123.4 million
- CFB Championship: 25 million
- Men's NCAA Championship (2023): 14.69 million
- NBA Finals: 11.64 million
- World Series: 9.1 million
- Stanley Cup Finals: 2.6 million
The viewership nearly doubled that of last year's LSU vs. Iowa national title match. It was up 89 percent from the 2023 championship and 285 percent from the 2022 championship.
This is the third straight game in which women's college hoops smashed a viewership record, starting with LSU and Iowa's rematch in the Elite Eight.
Caitlin Clark, Iowa shatter NCAA ratings during March Madness
Clark has dominated college hoops from the minute she stepped foot at Iowa. Her elite scoring ability allowed her to break the all-time points record and lead Iowa to two national championship appearances.
She began to draw in millions of viewers during her junior season in which she reached the championship game against LSU. The fanbase she garnered stayed with her through her historic senior season, and the records she broke weren't just in the scoring column.
Clark and Iowa initially set the record for the most-watched women's college basketball game in the 2023 national championship. Her squad beat that mark in the LSU-Iowa rematch that took place in the Elite Eight this year.
A week later, Clark's matchup with Paige Bueckers took the top spot, but that record lasted just two days before the title game made history.
Women's college hoops has greatly benefitted from not just Clark but also the entire class of women who have helped the growth of the sport over the past few years.
Iowa vs. South Carolina March Madness results
South Carolina continued its dominance, winning its second title in three seasons and third in program history. All three titles came since the 2017 season.
The Gamecocks won 87-75 despite trailing by seven after the first quarter. Tessa Johnson led the squad with 19 points off the bench, a major factor that differentiated the two clubs.
South Carolina's bench outscored Iowa's 37-0, coincidentally just one point short of the Gamecocks' final record (38-0).
Clark did her best to keep the Hawkeyes in the game, but it wasn't enough. She scored 30, 18 of which came in the first quarter. This marked the end of Clark's collegiate career, and she now prepares to be drafted No. 1 overall by the Indiana Fever in the 2024 WNBA Draft.
