The Iowa women’s basketball squad has sold out its entire season allotment of tickets, the first time the program has accomplished that feat. The Hawkeyes, who finished as the NCAA runner-up in April, have become college basketball rock stars within the state of Iowa. Here’s what to know:
- Iowa set the Big Ten record in average attendance last year at 11,142 and will look to crush that number this year.
- Capacity at Carver-Hawkeye Arena is 15,056, and the Hawkeyes led the nation with eight games above 13,000 fans last year.
- The Hawkeyes had featured just three sold-out regular-season games in program history before this news on Monday. Iowa’s last two season finales both reached capacity. This year, they all will.
Per Iowa: Season tickets for the 2023-24 University of Iowa women’s basketball team are sold out, the announcement was made Monday by the UI Athletics Department. It is the first time in school history the program has sold out Carver-Hawkeye Arena. pic.twitter.com/FHcON1PUFK
— Scott Dochterman (@ScottDochterman) August 14, 2023
Backstory
Demand was so high for season tickets in April, the athletics department halted sales. Even with a rise of at least $25 per regular-season ticket, fans bought the season out three months before the opening tip.
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At Big Ten road venues, Iowa’s nine opponents averaged 3,482 more fans than their season average. The Hawkeyes halted season-ticket sales for the upcoming year because demand far exceeded the supply. The Hawkeyes’ title-game appearance against LSU attracted the largest audience in women’s basketball history at 9.9 million viewers.
Even when a home non-conference game against Cleveland State on Dec. 16 was moved to Des Moines — two hours west of Iowa City — available tickets were sold out in 90 minutes.
Iowa women’s basketball will stage an exhibition at Kinnick Stadium against DePaul on Oct. 15. Tickets go on sale at 9 a.m. CT Tuesday for ticket holders and for the general public on Thursday.
Why such demand?
Two words: Caitlin Clark. Clark was the consensus national player of the year and averaged 27.8 points, 8.6 assists and 7.1 rebounds per game. Clark posted the first 40-point triple-double in NCAA tournament history (men’s or women’s) and shattered NCAA single-tournament records for most 3-point FGs made (24) and most points scored (191).
Clark is the first player in Division I women’s basketball history with more than 1,000 points and 300 assists in the same season. No player in the last 20 seasons — men’s or women’s — reached 1,500 career points faster than Clark. She was the unanimous women’s basketball player of the year.
Iowa won a school-record 31 games, finished NCAA national runners-up and was second in the country in attendance. Starters Kate Martin and Gabbie Marshall return as does budding superstar forward Hannah Stuelke.
Required reading
(Photo: Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
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