Success equals support?

Hanna Cooper Troy’s women’s basketball team has ranked in the top four in Sun Belt Conference standings for five consecutive seasons, including back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2016 and 2017. However, many students and fans don’t view the sport as worth attending. While student attendance was up 400% from previous seasons, free Chick-fil-A sandwiches, dollar hot dogs and bringing Santa into Trojan Arena should not be the reason that fans finally decide to come to a game. The general excuses fans use when deciding not to come to women’s basketball game include the notion that women’s basketball is a slow sport, the team is not as good as the men, or the lack of dunking makes it less entertaining. A little research and a quick stop by Trojan Arena would reveal some shocking discoveries. Heading into the conference tournament last season, Troy lead the Sun Belt Conference in 11 statistical categories (also ranked nationally in many of these categories). This included scoring offense, 3-pointers, rebounds, rebounds per game, steals per game and turnovers forced. The Troy women’s team has posted better records than the men’s team for six consecutive seasons. Despite the lack of dunking, the Trojans upset Ole Miss, beat the preseason favorite Little Rock inside of Trojan Arena, toppled in-state rival Alabama State by 70 points and took revenge on rival South Alabama; they have been an exciting team to watch. Because of the women’s basketball team’s success, the postseason play was brought to Troy for the first time in program history when the Trojan’s hosted UAB in the first round of the WNIT. The accomplishments of this team have gone largely unnoticed because of false notions about women’s basketball as a whole. This season, the Trojans host key conference matchups with Little Rock, Appalachian State and South Alabama all making trips to Trojan Arena. If you are looking for some entertainment, a women’s basketball game is an easy place to find it.