I first got a visceral feel for sports writing when I was in seventh grade. UConn is coming off a 39-0 season to win its third national title in eight years, and I anxiously awaited Sports Illustrated’s delivery.
When the magazine arrived, Maryland’s Juan Dixon graced the cover, but at the top of the April 8, 2002 issue it said: “UConn’s AMAZING WOMEN, Pg. 44.”
I immediately looked past “Faces in the Crowd,” which clearly featured female athletes in the 2002 magazine, and tore into a feature detailing the lives of UConn’s tight-knit seniors: Sue Bird, Swin Cash, Asjha Jones and Tamika. Williams. How they lived together off campus. We cook family dinner every week. We fought over card games and made bets on who would cry first on graduation night. … I ate it.
As a fan of women’s college basketball in the 1990s and 2000s, there wasn’t much to consume about the most interesting teams and players, so these details stayed with me years later. You almost never forget anything. The facts existed in your brain (sometimes for the next 20 years).
After re-reading the UConn story, I flipped to the back page to check out ‘Life of Riley,’ a column I always read.
title? “I’m out of touch with my feminine side.”
“Do you think coaching in the Final Four is difficult? Do you find it difficult to deal with a 280-pound senior, a freshman with an agent, and an athletic director with pockets full of pink slips?” Columnist Rick Reilly began. “Please. Try coaching 7th grade girls. After working with boys for 11 years, I helped coach my daughter Rae’s school basketball team this winter. I learned something about 7th grade girls. They “It’s usually in the bathroom.”
A few pages about the powerful, elite women of UConn had a three-word title on the cover and 800 words more appropriate for bad movies or lazy literature sandwiched on the back page. It was disappointing and frustrating. Worst of all, this was something that was expected even for me as a 7th grader.
For much of sports history, female athletes (and their fans) have had to accept the highs along with the lows and move on, understanding that the lows are too often intentional: a lack of investment, institutional support, or interest. Later, that low was an artificial reason to keep pushing and suppressing the sport. It’s a women’s sports Catch-22.
The “Caitlin Clark Effect” took hold in the WNBA this summer, drawing record attendances and massive TV ratings for teams not only for the Fever but across the league. As the women’s college season begins this week, interest remains, even without the stars who have taken women’s college basketball to new heights.
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Paige Bueckers vs. JuJu Watkins: How will UConn and USC stars put women’s basketball in the spotlight?
Defending champion South Carolina sold out season ticket packages for the first time in program history. UConn sells out season tickets for the first time since 2004. Aside from Angel Reese and Clark, LSU and Iowa are each sold out. Texas, Notre Dame and Tennessee are also reporting huge increases.
Five months ahead of the domestic title match, Final 4 tickets are sold out and the resale market is buzzing. A nosebleed at a national championship game costs nearly $200, while a courtside seat costs closer to $3,000.
For the first time since 2004-05, Gampel Pavilion season tickets are sold out!
Limited season tickets left for XL Center games ➡️ https://t.co/SLhPATBr4S pic.twitter.com/QGyhYGh81F
— UConn Women’s Basketball (@UConnWBB) October 2, 2024
No one in women’s basketball has won more than Dawn Staley. He has won Final Fours as a player, a national title as a coach, an Olympic gold medal as a player, and an Olympic gold medal as a coach. Her South Carolina office is filled with memorabilia. But of all her special accomplishments, this special moment in women’s college basketball feels uniquely different to her. “We feel like we have the freedom to explore where this game can go,” she said. “We have no boundaries, so we see everything: talent, coaching, fan support, viewership.”
Staley speaks often and publicly about how the women’s game has been intentionally sabotaged by many for a long time. First, before Title IX, it excluded women from sports. Then, by the NCAA, which prioritized men’s college basketball. Additionally, television media partners refused to expose the game to as many people as possible (and used this lack of audience as a reason not to air it on major networks) and print media refused to write articles about it. About women’s sports (and often claimed that no one read about it).
Then came last season. The year the women’s national title game drew nearly 4 million more viewers than the men’s title game came just three years after a Kaplan report found the NCAA intentionally underrated games and allowed media partners to underpay.
“This one.” Staley said, pausing for a moment and gesturing with his hands to indicate everything about the past year. “I never thought it would come at a time when I could be a part of it.”
Anyone who has been around women’s basketball will share the excitement and cautious optimism for this season. Will this finally be a turning point? Will the forces interfering with the game be permanently driven back?
Tara VanDerveer has seen it all, including what she thought was a turning point. In his first season in Columbus, 22,000 people showed up for the 1985 Iowa vs. Ohio State game. However, this turned out to be an outlier. Throughout her career, which began with driving the team bus and doing laundry as an assistant coach and finished last season at Stanford with three title rings and 1,216 career wins, she has been reminded of those starts and stops and moments that could have changed. I experienced time. If there had been investment, support and excitement, it would have gained momentum.
“We needed to build on this and not just treat it as a one-off,” VanDerveer said. “Keep your eye on the ball and keep your game growing. More young girls are playing. Great high school tournaments, passion for the college game. “People are excited about the WNBA.”
VanDerveer says that’s what it feels like today.
Clark took his game to a new level last season. This year, USC’s JuJu Watkins, UConn’s Paige Bueckers and the Gamecocks are poised to snap a 39-game winning streak. NIL has completely changed the way we market (and empower) women’s basketball players and win them new fans. Transfer portals have opened up player movement and democratized the game’s increasing parity. If you look around, you’ll see about 10 teams that look like they could make it to the Final Four. Gone are the days when UConn or Tennessee won too many games and were criticized for being bad for the sport.
Less than a week into the season, we’ve already seen the top five teams pushed to the brink. A talented star in women’s basketball? They draw pictures. But what could be better than this, a true belief that anything can happen in one night? It’s really interesting.
What we’re seeing has been a long time coming, and it still feels like we’re just getting started.
For decades, women’s college basketball deserved better than playing second fiddle in the NCAA orbit. The moments needed to be untethered so they could come together and become something bigger and better. It was worthy enough to have at least three words on the front cover and a favorite column on the back. It was totally worth the spread. So decision makers and stakeholders, don’t screw this up.
A new generation of seventh graders is watching.
(Dawn Staley Photo: Sean Rayford / Getty Images)
