DALLAS — It’s sports, so the numbers will matter.
They can be celebrated by winners and help tell the story. They can haunt the losing side, but they’ll still provide context. Numbers from Friday night’s Final Four matchup between No. 2 seed Iowa and No. 1 seed South Carolina are significant. Like 77-73 — the score that, because it was in favor of Iowa, shocked many. Like 41 — the number of points Caitlin Clark scored. Or 49 — the number of rebounds the Gamecocks grabbed, even with their All-America post Aliyah Boston on the bench through much of the first half with two fouls. Or 20 — the numbers of fouls called on South Carolina, some of which (should or should not have) been whistles, depending on whom you ask. Or 19,288 — the sellout crowd at American Airlines Arena for the Final Four games.
But the number will matter most years from now will be the one that can’t be dissected by coaches in film study or broken down from a box score. When the television viewership numbers are released, they’ll shatter records. Even as it was unknown Friday night exactly how many televisions were tuning in, we can say with near certainty that the Iowa-South Carolina Final Four will be the highest-viewed women’s basketball game of all time.
It was a good game because of…
