Biggest Rivalries in Womens College Basketball

[HuskerFan86]

Does anything even compare to the UConn/Tennessee rivalry in the women's game?

What will be the next big rivalry? Maybe if Duke continues to steal prized recruits and Final Four bids from UConn and Tennessee, the Blue Devils will become a major rival with the Vols or Huskies.

Womens basketball needs more fierce and competitive rivalries to create a bigger fan base outside Storrs and Knoxville. This year's battle between Tennessee and UConn got more publicity than all the previous womens games this season combined.

[two cents]

Watch what happens next week with Tech at UT. Hope we can all keep our cool.

But you are right about the publicity given to the UConn-Tennessee game. Members of the sports media with a token interest in women's basketball get geeked up over that game. However, within the sport, I don't think that series is as significant as many of the within conference rivalries around the country. Conference championships are still important to most coaches and fans.

[This message has been edited by two cents (edited 01-17-2003).]

[35TangoTango]

The big intersectional rivalries serve another key purpose - recruiting. Women players seem much more likely to stay close to home when it's time to go to college.

The teams that can recruit nationally are the teams that go anywhere, play anyone - all over the country. UConn, Tennessee, Stanford. Duke is trying to join that club. Duke and Stanford have the additional recruiting advantage of academic reputation - something much more important in Women's BB than in Men's.

I think the UConn/Tennessee rivalry has been a win-win situation. It has boosted awarenes of WBB in general, and certainly hasn't done the reputations of either school any harm.

If a Big XII school wants to join that club, they have to get out and play around the country. Of course, they also have to be on top in their conference most of the time.

[DblT81]

Originally posted by HuskerFan86:
Does anything even compare to the UConn/Tennessee rivalry in the women's game?

This year's battle between Tennessee and UConn got more publicity than all the previous womens games this season combined.

Don't confuse "most hype" with "biggest rivalry".

There are lots of more heated rivalry contests that are ignored by the media.

[ChipperF1]

"Don't confuse "most hype" with "biggest rivalry".

I don't think anyone is in this case. Connecticut-Tennessee is the game that gets the whole town talking. Give this matchup its due. Outside of North Carolina-Duke for the men I can't think of a game that gets a greater national profile of interest.

The Lady Vol-Husky war is one of the greatest rivalries in all collegiate sport, period.

No other game in womens college basketball has the passion this one generates nationwide and in its history few game match the stakes continually raised in this game. There has NEVER been a meaningless UConn-Tennessee clash.

This matchup raises the profile of the sport as a whole in many respects, and should be respected as such.