Longtime college basketball analyst Andy Katz, who is now with NCAA.com, left Arizona off of his list of the top 10 fan bases nationally. The Arizona basketball program has been regarded as having one of the best fan bases nationally since Lute Olson led the Wildcats to becoming a national power in the late 1980s.
Arizona finished 12th nationally in attendance in 2022–23, averaging 14,115 fans per game. The 2022–23 season was the most recent year attendance figures are listed by the NCAA. Several of the schools on Katz's top 10 were below Arizona in 2023–23 average attendance.
Average attendance should not be the sole consideration. The capacity of each arena for the schools listed in Katz's top 10 varies. Katz did not list criteria for the top 10. Other factors, like how well a team travels for neutral site and road games, a program's national presence and TV ratings, matter.
Social media following is another measure in the modern era to determine the top 10 college basketball fan bases. Per AthleticDirectorU.Com, Duke leads all programs with 4,266.000 followers across Facebook, Instragram and Twitter. Kentucky, North Carolina, Indiana and Kansas are the top five teams in social media followers.
My top 10 @MarchMadnessMBB fan bases: https://t.co/6GWRnQz1c1
— Andy Katz (@TheAndyKatz) August 26, 2024
Arizona conversely has 425,500 followers across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. The list by Katz is subjective, but Arizona is more of a national basketball brand than at least Illinois, Iowa State and Purdue. Illinois advanced to the second weekend for the first time since 2005 and Iowa State resides in a fly over state.
Purdue has been the most successful program in the Big 10 over the past 10 years, but a lot of their national attention recently was due to their first round loss to Farleigh Dickenson in the 2023 NCAA Tournament and two-time National Player of the Year Zach Edey. Arizona has built a consistently nationally relevant brand.
Tommy Lloyd has kept Arizona nationally relevant, succeeding Sean Miller. Miller did the same after taking over three seasons after Lute Olson's career concluded. Arizona certainly should be on the list of the top 10 fanbases in college basketball. As with any other list like this, it is always subjective.