The Watercooler
Congratulations to the women’s basketball team on a fantastic season. I attended as many games as I could, and was impressed by the maximum effort, excellent team play, and incredible success of this year’s squad.
Unfortunately, there aren’t many others who could say the same thing. Despite being ranked in the nation’s top 25 almost the entire season, attendance at games rarely was much more than 1,000. I’ve been attending
women’s basketball games since 1998, and no matter how good the team is, not many people pay attention.
Since this is unlikely to change, I have a few suggestions that would allow the team to maximize what fan support they have. First of all, move the
games from the Marriott Center to the Smith Field House. I don’t know how the locker rooms compare, but the Fieldhouse hosts women’s volleyball, so
the facilities should be adequate, and there would be plenty of room for teams, fans, cheerleaders, and band, and the atmosphere would be much
better.
Second, the athletic department should do whatever it takes to avoid scheduling conflicts with the men’s team. More people would attend or watch on TV the games of both teams if they didn’t have to choose between the two, as was the case several times this season.
We have a great women’s basketball program here at BYU, but a few simple changes like these could help it be even better.
Jeff Hofmann
Murray, Utah
