How UConn-Purdue Men's Championship TV Ratings Stacked Up Against Women's Title Game

Patrick Andres | Apr 9, 2024

Purdue Boilermakers forward Mason Gillis is guarded by Connecticut Huskies forward Alex Karaban in the national championship. / Michael Chow/The Republic / USA TODAY

It once seemed unthinkable.

The men's NCAA tournament had all the resources in the world. It had a red-letter television deal with CBS (and later Turner Sports as well). It had nearly a century of lore and mystique. Its dominance over the women's NCAA tournament from a sheer ratings standpoint seemed bulletproof, even in years when it was a clear loser in the entertainment department.

Those days, as of Tuesday afternoon, are history.

The NCAA women's national championship between South Carolina and Iowa on Sunday drew significantly more viewers than the men's championship between Connecticut and Purdue on Monday, Nielsen announced Tuesday, further validating women's college basketball's ascent to a central position in American sports.

The final score: Iowa-South Carolina 18.9 million, Purdue-Connecticut 14.8 million.

Several causes for the women's championship's earning the edge in viewership can be pinpointed. Star power in women's college basketball is at an all-time high, showcased by the likes of Iowa guard Caitlin Clark matching up against South Carolina coach Dawn Staley and her undefeated Gamecocks. The women's championship is in a more favorable time slot—3 p.m. ET on Sunday compared to 9:20 p.m. Monday—and was a more entertaining game.

However, any explanation must ultimately take a backseat to the importance of a landmark moment in college athletics' long history.