March Madness is here! For basketball fans across the country, that means filling out tournament brackets, entering office betting pools, cheering on alma maters, and occasionally breaking down in tears while watching a favorite team soar to victory or wallow in defeat.
My love of basketball was instilled at an early age. My parents started taking me to Stanford women’s basketball games when I was four. According to my mom, I was equally transfixed by both the excitement of the game and the infamously bouncy floor of Maples Pavilion. We have been loyally attending women’s games ever since.
As this time of year approaches, I am filled with excitement, but I also dread two things about March madness: the inevitable advancement of Stanford’s rival, the Tennessee Lady Vols, and the general lack of focus on the women’s tournament. Media coverage, of course, goes with the ratings and is always slanted toward the men’s tournament. What really gets to me are people who don’t really consider the women’s tournament as a part of March Madness. Every year I get invited to join bracket pools that are only for the men’s tournament, and I also find myself accidently shutting down March Madness conversations by mentioning the women’s tournament. I find it quite … maddening!
The women’s game is more exciting than ever right now and has appeal for sports fans and women’s advocates. In addition to being an exciting and entertaining sport, women’s college basketball is shattering the glass ceiling one jump shot at a time. The University of Connecticut Huskies won 90 games in a row, securing the record for the longest-winning streak in NCAA Division I basketball (men’s or women’s). The Stanford women’s team beat UConn before they reached 91 games and joined the list of teams that have bookended famous winning streaks. The UConn streak finally made women’s basketball the top story in sports news — at least for a few weeks.
This year’s tournament promises to be exciting, as four powerhouses have the potential to take the title. UConn (30-1) is the defending champion and will be out to prove that the end of their winning streak did not mean the end of their dominance. No. 2 Stanford (27-2) has shown they can beat the best, and they will be hungry to secure victory after losing in the championship game last season. Both UConn and Stanford could be upset by No. 3 Baylor (28-2), led by 6-foot-8-inch sophomore Brittney Griner. No. 4 Tennessee (31-2) also has the potential to take the tournament; they are always a strong team. Coach Pat Summitt has won a record eight NCAA tournaments.
In addition to being entertaining and groundbreaking, women’s college basketball provides young girls with strong women role models. For a large chunk of my childhood, I wanted to be a basketball player. And while my 5-foot-4-inch height and lack of hand-eye coordination nipped that dream in the bud, my foray into sports provided me with important lessons about dedication, teamwork, and leadership.
So this year, fill out a women’s bracket, watch some women’s games, and tell your daughters they can break records!
This post was written by AAUW Public Policy and Government Relations Fellow Sarah McDermott.
Well-written and very valid points!
XXOXOXOX
Since Lisa has now shown her school pride, I will too…Go UConn! I’m so proud that my alma mater has provided incredible female role models for young girls.
I’m thinking this is more a marketing delema? The commercials that run during NBA,NFL,NHL,NCAA events Ect. Are geared toward the male audience. Beer and Gillette deoderant sponsers don’t see the market in womens sports.So some marketing company needs to address this and bring the sponsers who would! It’s the money and would men watch if the advertisers were female based?
I couldn’t agree more! I have been a avid fan of women’s basketball for decades, and this year’s NCAA tournament promises to be tremendously exciting. So many talented teams, and no clear favorite.
I also share the frustration in the second-rate media coverage of the women’s tournament. I still remember the days when they only televised the Final Four games for the women (which you could only see if you subscribed to cable channels). But over time, more games were televised, more girls saw them, and more girls started playing the game. Now, instead of having just 2-3 perennial powerhouse teams in the country, there is an amazing breadth of talent spanning teams from every conference.
Something else happened in recent years: Media stories started including mention of the high graduation rates of many of the best women’s college basketball programs, and contrasted that with the abysmal graduation rates of the men’s programs.
So as I watch the women’s tournament, I take real pride in watching amazing athletes perform at the top of their game, and the coaches who teach them important life skills that extend well outside the gym.
Go Stanford!
Amen! Thanks for writing that great post Sarah. Love the headline as well… Only thing missing — a picture of the Lady Terps. Yes, I’m biased. But I’m a proud U of MD alum and happy to see that the Lady Terps earned a No. 4 seed in the tourney. And check out the coach’s stats…
In her 12 years as a head coach, Brenda Frese’s teams have made eight NCAA Tournament appearances. She’s coached her teams to four Sweet Sixteens (1999, 2006, 2008, 2009), four Elite Eights (1999, 2006, 2008, 2009) and the 2006 National Championship!!!
http://www.umterps.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/031411aab.html