WVU big contributor to NCAA basketball attendance surge
MORGANTOWN - NCAA Division I basketball programs combined to draw the fourth-highest attendance in the sport's history last season. West Virginia and the Big East Conference chipped in with more than their share.
MORGANTOWN - NCAA Division I basketball programs combined to draw the fourth-highest attendance in the sport's history last season. West Virginia and the Big East Conference chipped in with more than their share.
On the strength of its winningest season in history, West Virginia had the fifth-largest increase in the country in terms of average attendance. Overall, more than 11 percent of the total attendance of 27.5 million in Division I came to see Big East games.
The figures are included in the NCAA's annual basketball attendance report released this month.
In terms of average attendance, West Virginia ranked No. 27 overall at 12,375 per game. The NCAA includes in that total the crowd of 12,348 for the November game with The Citadel in Charleston, but not the game at the same site with Marshall, which is considered a neutral court.
Officially, the school does not count the game with The Citadel in its home attendance figures, but including it in the NCAA figures reduced the average attendance by only two. WVU's record books will list both the 14-game average of 12,377 and the total Coliseum attendance of 173,281 as school records. The old marks were 11,384 and 170,762, both in 15 games during the 1981-82 season.
As for WVU's attendance increase from the previous year, that was an average of 1,823 over the 2008-09 figure of 10,552. Only Kansas State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Hampton and Kentucky had a larger increase in average game attendance. The numbers posted by Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Hampton (both had an increase of roughly 2,000 per game) more than doubled their attendance from the previous year.
It wasn't just at home that West Virginia drew huge crowds. In all-games attendance (home, road and neutral courts), the Mountaineers ranked No. 10 in the country. More than half a million fans (531,732) saw the team play a school-record 38 games and win a best-ever 31 on the way to its first Final Four appearance in half a century.
As for the Big East, on average the 285 games or sessions of tournaments played by the league's 16 teams drew 3,138,877 fans. That includes a total attendance of 155,000 for eight sessions of the conference tournament at Madison Square Garden. No other league drew more total fans for regular-season or tournament games, in part because no league is as large and played as many games.
The Big East's average attendance of 11,014 was fourth overall behind the Big Ten, SEC and Big 12, and the average tournament attendance of 19,375 was second only to the ACC.
That total attendance of 3,138,877 is the second-highest total ever for any conference. The record is 3,259,992 by the Big East three years ago.
Total attendance at Division I games last season was 27,539,459, the fourth-highest ever. The record is 28,135,901 in 2008. Including Division II and Division III, total attendance was 32,820,701, which also ranks fourth all-time.
The 334 Division I teams played 5,251 games and averaged 5,245 spectators per game. Marshall was just above that average, drawing 104,143 according to the NCAA, an average of 5,481 per game. That ranked just inside the Top 100 at No. 99.
For the 14th time in the last 15 years, Kentucky led the nation in average attendance at 24,111 per game. Syracuse was second at 22,152. One of those schools has led the nation in attendance in each of the past 34 seasons.
The Big Ten led all conferences in attendance for the 34th consecutive year with 12,591 per game.
This article is available only to our premium digital content subscribers.
WVU big contributor to NCAA basketball attendance surge
MORGANTOWN - NCAA Division I basketball programs combined to draw the fourth-highest attendance in the sport's history last season. West Virginia and the Big East Conference chipped in with more than their share.
On the strength of its winningest season in history, West Virginia had the fifth-largest increase in the country in terms of average attendance. Overall, more than 11 percent of the total attendance of 27.5 million in Division I came to see Big East games.
The figures are included in the NCAA's annual basketball attendance report released this month.
In terms of average attendance, West Virginia ranked No. 27 overall at 12,375 per game. The NCAA includes in that total the crowd of 12,348 for the November game with The Citadel in Charleston, but not the game at the same site with Marshall, which is considered a neutral court.
Officially, the school does not count the game with The Citadel in its home attendance figures, but including it in the NCAA figures reduced the average attendance by only two. WVU's record books will list both the 14-game average of 12,377 and the total Coliseum attendance of 173,281 as school records. The old marks were 11,384 and 170,762, both in 15 games during the 1981-82 season.
As for WVU's attendance increase from the previous year, that was an average of 1,823 over the 2008-09 figure of 10,552. Only Kansas State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Hampton and Kentucky had a larger increase in average game attendance. The numbers posted by Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Hampton (both had an increase of roughly 2,000 per game) more than doubled their attendance from the previous year.
It wasn't just at home that West Virginia drew huge crowds. In all-games attendance (home, road and neutral courts), the Mountaineers ranked No. 10 in the country. More than half a million fans (531,732) saw the team play a school-record 38 games and win a best-ever 31 on the way to its first Final Four appearance in half a century.
As for the Big East, on average the 285 games or sessions of tournaments played by the league's 16 teams drew 3,138,877 fans. That includes a total attendance of 155,000 for eight sessions of the conference tournament at Madison Square Garden. No other league drew more total fans for regular-season or tournament games, in part because no league is as large and played as many games.
The Big East's average attendance of 11,014 was fourth overall behind the Big Ten, SEC and Big 12, and the average tournament attendance of 19,375 was second only to the ACC.
That total attendance of 3,138,877 is the second-highest total ever for any conference. The record is 3,259,992 by the Big East three years ago.
Total attendance at Division I games last season was 27,539,459, the fourth-highest ever. The record is 28,135,901 in 2008. Including Division II and Division III, total attendance was 32,820,701, which also ranks fourth all-time.
The 334 Division I teams played 5,251 games and averaged 5,245 spectators per game. Marshall was just above that average, drawing 104,143 according to the NCAA, an average of 5,481 per game. That ranked just inside the Top 100 at No. 99.
For the 14th time in the last 15 years, Kentucky led the nation in average attendance at 24,111 per game. Syracuse was second at 22,152. One of those schools has led the nation in attendance in each of the past 34 seasons.
The Big Ten led all conferences in attendance for the 34th consecutive year with 12,591 per game.
Click here to sign up for a one month subscription.
1 Month Online + Print Delivery
$31.99
Click here to sign up for our Premium subscription package.
MORGANTOWN - NCAA Division I basketball programs combined to draw the fourth-highest attendance in the sport's history last season. West Virginia and the Big East Conference chipped in with more than their share.
On the strength of its winningest season in history, West Virginia had the fifth-largest increase in the country in terms of average attendance. Overall, more than 11 percent of the total attendance of 27.5 million in Division I came to see Big East games.
The figures are included in the NCAA's annual basketball attendance report released this month.
In terms of average attendance, West Virginia ranked No. 27 overall at 12,375 per game. The NCAA includes in that total the crowd of 12,348 for the November game with The Citadel in Charleston, but not the game at the same site with Marshall, which is considered a neutral court.
Officially, the school does not count the game with The Citadel in its home attendance figures, but including it in the NCAA figures reduced the average attendance by only two. WVU's record books will list both the 14-game average of 12,377 and the total Coliseum attendance of 173,281 as school records. The old marks were 11,384 and 170,762, both in 15 games during the 1981-82 season.
As for WVU's attendance increase from the previous year, that was an average of 1,823 over the 2008-09 figure of 10,552. Only Kansas State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Hampton and Kentucky had a larger increase in average game attendance. The numbers posted by Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Hampton (both had an increase of roughly 2,000 per game) more than doubled their attendance from the previous year.
It wasn't just at home that West Virginia drew huge crowds. In all-games attendance (home, road and neutral courts), the Mountaineers ranked No. 10 in the country. More than half a million fans (531,732) saw the team play a school-record 38 games and win a best-ever 31 on the way to its first Final Four appearance in half a century.
As for the Big East, on average the 285 games or sessions of tournaments played by the league's 16 teams drew 3,138,877 fans. That includes a total attendance of 155,000 for eight sessions of the conference tournament at Madison Square Garden. No other league drew more total fans for regular-season or tournament games, in part because no league is as large and played as many games.
The Big East's average attendance of 11,014 was fourth overall behind the Big Ten, SEC and Big 12, and the average tournament attendance of 19,375 was second only to the ACC.
That total attendance of 3,138,877 is the second-highest total ever for any conference. The record is 3,259,992 by the Big East three years ago.
Total attendance at Division I games last season was 27,539,459, the fourth-highest ever. The record is 28,135,901 in 2008. Including Division II and Division III, total attendance was 32,820,701, which also ranks fourth all-time.
The 334 Division I teams played 5,251 games and averaged 5,245 spectators per game. Marshall was just above that average, drawing 104,143 according to the NCAA, an average of 5,481 per game. That ranked just inside the Top 100 at No. 99.
For the 14th time in the last 15 years, Kentucky led the nation in average attendance at 24,111 per game. Syracuse was second at 22,152. One of those schools has led the nation in attendance in each of the past 34 seasons.
The Big Ten led all conferences in attendance for the 34th consecutive year with 12,591 per game.
This article is available only to our premium digital content subscribers.
WVU big contributor to NCAA basketball attendance surge
MORGANTOWN - NCAA Division I basketball programs combined to draw the fourth-highest attendance in the sport's history last season. West Virginia and the Big East Conference chipped in with more than their share.
On the strength of its winningest season in history, West Virginia had the fifth-largest increase in the country in terms of average attendance. Overall, more than 11 percent of the total attendance of 27.5 million in Division I came to see Big East games.
The figures are included in the NCAA's annual basketball attendance report released this month.
In terms of average attendance, West Virginia ranked No. 27 overall at 12,375 per game. The NCAA includes in that total the crowd of 12,348 for the November game with The Citadel in Charleston, but not the game at the same site with Marshall, which is considered a neutral court.
Officially, the school does not count the game with The Citadel in its home attendance figures, but including it in the NCAA figures reduced the average attendance by only two. WVU's record books will list both the 14-game average of 12,377 and the total Coliseum attendance of 173,281 as school records. The old marks were 11,384 and 170,762, both in 15 games during the 1981-82 season.
As for WVU's attendance increase from the previous year, that was an average of 1,823 over the 2008-09 figure of 10,552. Only Kansas State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Hampton and Kentucky had a larger increase in average game attendance. The numbers posted by Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Hampton (both had an increase of roughly 2,000 per game) more than doubled their attendance from the previous year.
It wasn't just at home that West Virginia drew huge crowds. In all-games attendance (home, road and neutral courts), the Mountaineers ranked No. 10 in the country. More than half a million fans (531,732) saw the team play a school-record 38 games and win a best-ever 31 on the way to its first Final Four appearance in half a century.
As for the Big East, on average the 285 games or sessions of tournaments played by the league's 16 teams drew 3,138,877 fans. That includes a total attendance of 155,000 for eight sessions of the conference tournament at Madison Square Garden. No other league drew more total fans for regular-season or tournament games, in part because no league is as large and played as many games.
The Big East's average attendance of 11,014 was fourth overall behind the Big Ten, SEC and Big 12, and the average tournament attendance of 19,375 was second only to the ACC.
That total attendance of 3,138,877 is the second-highest total ever for any conference. The record is 3,259,992 by the Big East three years ago.
Total attendance at Division I games last season was 27,539,459, the fourth-highest ever. The record is 28,135,901 in 2008. Including Division II and Division III, total attendance was 32,820,701, which also ranks fourth all-time.
The 334 Division I teams played 5,251 games and averaged 5,245 spectators per game. Marshall was just above that average, drawing 104,143 according to the NCAA, an average of 5,481 per game. That ranked just inside the Top 100 at No. 99.
For the 14th time in the last 15 years, Kentucky led the nation in average attendance at 24,111 per game. Syracuse was second at 22,152. One of those schools has led the nation in attendance in each of the past 34 seasons.
The Big Ten led all conferences in attendance for the 34th consecutive year with 12,591 per game.
