2 hours ago, Tranquility Base said:

It was also on ESPN and I think ESPN 2 had the game and the Sue Bird Diana Turasi podcast thing.  I only watched the ABC cast, So I don't know if ESPN was the same thing or it differed in some way.   Will be interesting to see the numbers when they are released.

Also on ESPN+

4 hours ago, Oldercoach said:

Is it me and my low tech, but men’s semifinals on TBS, TRU and TNT whiles women’s semifinal on ESPN?  Or did I miss the men’s broadcast on a more visible network?

Yes CBS and Turner have been rotating last couple of years for the Men's.

TBS is actually in more households than ESPN. 

3 hours ago, Tranquility Base said:

It was also on ESPN and I think ESPN 2 had the game and the Sue Bird Diana Turasi podcast thing.  I only watched the ABC cast, So I don't know if ESPN was the same thing or it differed in some way.   Will be interesting to see the numbers when they are released.

18.7 Million

https://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/story/_/I'd/39902902/ncaa-women-title-game-most-watched-hoops-game-2019

"The only sporting events in the United States to draw a bigger TV audience since 2019 have been football, the World Cup and the Olympics.

The audience numbers are expected to increase when Nielsen releases its final numbers Tuesday. Nielsen said the audience peaked at 24 million."

 

The pressure is now on the NCAA and the networks to keep the momentum going.   The young women will do their part.  The organization can't let them down.

wthr.com had an article about Clark and pay but the link won't work correctly.

How much will Caitlin Clark make in WNBA?

Clark and Reese became millionaires during their college careers, and despite the WNBA salary range, going pro doesn't doesn't mean the collegiate standouts will take a dramatic pay cut — or any pay cut for that matter.

The pair had the top two name, image and likeness (NIL) valuations for women's basketball players and those deals are expected to carry over into their pro careers.

Clark's NIL deals are valued at just over $3 million and Reese at $1.8 million, according to On3.com. Clark's deals include Nike, Gatorade, State Farm and Buick; Reese, who has built her own brand over the past few years, has a long list of sponsors that includes Reebok, Coach and Sports Illustrated.

===============

So the NIL deals "are expected to carry over" lol, that is funny.  Why isn't their a solid answer on this.

And again, going to the WNBA early makes NO SENSE to me, none, zero...  Unless somehow it allows players to make more money than the "college version of the NIL."

Anyone?

9 minutes ago, theguru said:

wthr.com had an article about Clark and pay but the link won't work correctly.

How much will Caitlin Clark make in WNBA?

Clark and Reese became millionaires during their college careers, and despite the WNBA salary range, going pro doesn't doesn't mean the collegiate standouts will take a dramatic pay cut — or any pay cut for that matter.

The pair had the top two name, image and likeness (NIL) valuations for women's basketball players and those deals are expected to carry over into their pro careers.

Clark's NIL deals are valued at just over $3 million and Reese at $1.8 million, according to On3.com. Clark's deals include Nike, Gatorade, State Farm and Buick; Reese, who has built her own brand over the past few years, has a long list of sponsors that includes Reebok, Coach and Sports Illustrated.

===============

So the NIL deals "are expected to carry over" lol, that is funny.  Why isn't their a solid answer on this.

And again, going to the WNBA early makes NO SENSE to me, none, zero...  Unless somehow it allows players to make more money than the "college version of the NIL."

Anyone?

Maybe they don't like "going to class" or being in the fish bowls of college campuses?

2 minutes ago, okie1 said:

Maybe they don't like "going to class" or being in the fish bowls of college campuses?

I mean I guess.  They could always live off campus, have bodyguards (Clark probably already needs that) and take underwater basket weaving. 

But I hear you, if I was young and had millions there would be no way on Earth I would want to sit in another college class and be treated like I am 2. 

2 minutes ago, theguru said:

I mean I guess.  They could always live off campus, have bodyguards (Clark probably already needs that) and take underwater basket weaving. 

But I hear you, if I was young and had millions there would be no way on Earth I would want to sit in another college class and be treated like I am 2. 

I also think as a competitor, you want the next big challenge, which is obviously playing professionally.  

1 minute ago, okie1 said:

I also think as a competitor, you want the next big challenge, which is obviously playing professionally.  

Sure, but not at 76K vs. 3 mil. 

10 minutes ago, theguru said:

Sure, but not at 76K vs. 3 mil. 

Surely there are some big guarantees of carryover?

Also with NIL, are players allowed to sign contracts with companies/corporations or is it all "per appearance"?  Maybe being professional allows them to sign multi year deals with these companies.

4 minutes ago, okie1 said:

Surely there are some big guarantees of carryover?

Also with NIL, are players allowed to sign contracts with companies/corporations or is it all "per appearance"?  Maybe being professional allows them to sign multi year deals with these companies.

I think we have to assume they will be able to make more out of college than in college but I want to see how it all works. 

On 4/8/2024 at 1:37 AM, sportsfan41 said:

Staley just doesn't do it for me.  That's the right thing for her to say, just not sure she means it.

 

With that said I've liked Staley at times, but less and less lately. 

On 4/8/2024 at 11:55 AM, theguru said:

I just started paying attention so I am sure what I think right now and what I may think after a couple of more years of paying attention may be different.

She was "heavy" on God and it also sounds like she lets her players get away with a lot.  

Isn't she some new wave version of Phil Jackson? 

It didn't take me long to jump off the Staley bandwagon, she is for men playing women's sports, that is a full stop for me.

OutKick’s Dan Zaksheske asked Staley during a press conference on Saturday if transgender athletes should be allowed to play on a women's college basketball team. 

"I'm of the opinion of, if you're a woman, you should play. If you consider yourself a woman, and you want to play sports or vice versa, you should be able to play. That's my opinion. You want me to go deeper?" she said.

When asked whether she thought "transgender women should be able to participate in women's college basketball," Staley responded, "Yes."

==============

She drew fire from former UK swimmer Riley Gaines on this topic and ended up blocking Gaines on X, lol:

Gaines accused Staley of blowing a "once-in-a-lifetime" opportunity, arguing she didn't have the "courage" to stand with female athletes. 

"The bottom line is she knows perfectly well that men's basketball is a totally different sport than women's basketball," Gaines said. 

"That's obvious by the speed of the game, the size of the ball, the sheer amount of layups in women's basketball compared to dunks when a player gets a fast break in men's basketball, the distance of the three-point line, the list goes on."

"It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for her and she blew it, and truthfully, my guess is she's okay with it until her team [is] defeated by one or more men playing on the opposite team."

After Gaines' "Fox & Friends" interview, the former swimmer said Staley blocked her on X, formerly known as Twitter. "HA," Gaines posted with a screengrab showing Staley had blocked her profile. 

===============

Here is a link to the article which includes other links but you know the story now and like I said anyone can have my seat on the bandwagon, I am done.

https://www.foxnews.com/media/riley-gaines-rips-sc-basketball-coach-stance-trans-athletes-incompetent-sellout

15 minutes ago, theguru said:

It didn't take me long to jump off the Staley bandwagon, she is for men playing women's sports, that is a full stop for me.

OutKick’s Dan Zaksheske asked Staley during a press conference on Saturday if transgender athletes should be allowed to play on a women's college basketball team. 

"I'm of the opinion of, if you're a woman, you should play. If you consider yourself a woman, and you want to play sports or vice versa, you should be able to play. That's my opinion. You want me to go deeper?" she said.

When asked whether she thought "transgender women should be able to participate in women's college basketball," Staley responded, "Yes."

==============

She drew fire from former UK swimmer Riley Gaines on this topic and ended up blocking Gaines on X, lol:

Gaines accused Staley of blowing a "once-in-a-lifetime" opportunity, arguing she didn't have the "courage" to stand with female athletes. 

"The bottom line is she knows perfectly well that men's basketball is a totally different sport than women's basketball," Gaines said. 

"That's obvious by the speed of the game, the size of the ball, the sheer amount of layups in women's basketball compared to dunks when a player gets a fast break in men's basketball, the distance of the three-point line, the list goes on."

"It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for her and she blew it, and truthfully, my guess is she's okay with it until her team [is] defeated by one or more men playing on the opposite team."

After Gaines' "Fox & Friends" interview, the former swimmer said Staley blocked her on X, formerly known as Twitter. "HA," Gaines posted with a screengrab showing Staley had blocked her profile. 

===============

Here is a link to the article which includes other links but you know the story now and like I said anyone can have my seat on the bandwagon, I am done.

https://www.foxnews.com/media/riley-gaines-rips-sc-basketball-coach-stance-trans-athletes-incompetent-sellout

Someone who is gay took a pro-transgender stance. Breaking news!

Look, I am in agreement with you on the subject, btw, as I believe most people are. But in the twisted media entertainment world in which we live, we use a post-championship game press conference opportunity to ask a hot-button transgender trigger topic that the reporter knew the answer to, just so they could queue up the Riley Gaines bat signal. For every transgender person devoting their energy into breaking into a female sport (it ain't many transgender people looking to play sports, I assure you), there are thousands of people there in opposition.

10 minutes ago, bugatti said:

Someone who is gay took a pro-transgender stance. Breaking news!

Look, I am in agreement with you on the subject, btw, as I believe most people are. But in the twisted media entertainment world in which we live, we use a post-championship game press conference opportunity to ask a hot-button transgender trigger topic that the reporter knew the answer to, just so they could queue up the Riley Gaines bat signal. For every transgender person devoting their energy into breaking into a female sport (it ain't many transgender people looking to play sports, I assure you), there are thousands of people there in opposition.

I agree the timing is unfortunate but then again, maybe not.  I was ready to jump on the Staley bandwagon (and I had no idea about her sexuality but that makes no difference to me and has nothing to do with this issue) but I am glad the point is clarified. 

Unfortunately it is going to take a couple of colleges embracing transgender athletes on their female hoops teams and blowing the competition away before something changes.  The only reason it happened in swimming so quick is because it is an individual sport.   

And in many ways we live in the stupidest times on Earth.  Especially the main stream media which is a complete joke and in my opinion is actively working against American citizens to tear almost every institution down. 

Finally, it is only going to take two decent transgender basketball players added to ANY team in the Top 20 and we have our National Champs, just saying...

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and doesn't have to defend it.

26 minutes ago, Tranquility Base said:

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and doesn't have to defend it.

I am sure there are tens of thousands of female athletes that strongly disagree with you on this point but I hear what you are saying.