Missouri men’s basketball is off to a 6-0 start, the program’s best since the 2006-07 season. The Tigers are ranked No. 13 in both the coaches’ and AP polls and have won each of their first six games by at least 15 points. And hardly any students have been there to witness the team’s early success.
MU has hosted four opponents at Mizzou Arena thus far, and those foes have been greeted by row after row of barren bleachers and seas of empty seats.
Attendance figures are dastardly low, as MU is averaging just 6,685 fans per game. Despite boasting the Big 12’s third largest capacity of 15,061, Mizzou Arena has featured the third-lowest attendance figures in the conference thus far.
These totals are all for a team currently ranked in the top 25 that has made three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, and whose senior class has more wins (83) than any other in program history.
Players have been frustrated by the perceived lack of interest from the MU fan base, particularly the student body, and have voiced their displeasure publicly on Twitter.
“Good win but i must say the attendance was horrible tonight a little under 6,000! Seniors that have lost only 3 games in Mizzou Arena smh” junior guard Michael Dixon tweeted after MU dispatched Mercer in front of 5,778 fans earlier this season.
After defeating Notre Dame and No. 18 California by a combined 68 points to win last week’s CBE Classic in Kansas City, the Tigers returned home Sunday to 10,024 empty seats. Sunday’s announced attendance of 5,037 for Missouri’s 88-59 win over Binghampton was the lowest to date at Mizzou Arena this season.
“6-0 baby!. Shoutout to the alumni and non student sections today. Student section was absolutely pitiful. Thanks to those who came,” senior guard Kim English tweeted following MU’s 88-59 victory over Binghamton on Sunday.
Select members of the student body have also been discouraged by the perceived lack of interest and support for this year’s team.
Senior Eric Hollenbach is one such student. He is the leader of the Antlers, a cheering section of 35 active members. The group has two rules: don’t curse, and be in attendance at every game. All members have been in attendance at every home game, as they are required to be and have been this season.
“That was really depressing,” Hollenbach said of Sunday’s attendance. “The fact that the PA announcer had to encourage students to move down to the lower section of the stadium for a top 25 ranked team, it’s pathetic.”
Much angst from die-hard fans such as the Antlers has been directed towards the student section, and Zou Crew in particular. Monday afternoon, Zou Crew released a statement on its Facebook page.
“We appreciate all your comments and hear what you are saying,” Zou Crew said following the victory over Binghampton. “Our goal is to support our team as much as any other student. We will continue to work on making our organization better. Thank you and go Tigers!”
Sunday was a day of travel for many MU students as they made the trek back to Columbia for classes Monday, but other schools around the country experienced no such attendance issues.
A game between Virginia Tech and St. Bonaventure in Blacksburg, Va., featured 8,710 in attendance. and 10,385 showed up in Tuscaloosa, Al., to see Alabama and VCU.
In fact, the early-season attendance woes are not a widespread issue. The Tigers have played vastly inferior competition, but so has every other BCS school, and the vast majority of those schools have higher attendance numbers than MU.
The Tigers’ average attendance of 6,685 ranks eighth in the Big 12. Only Baylor and Texas A&M have had lower average crowds so far this season. Baylor’s arena capacity is only 10,347, meaning the Bears have had it 63 percent full. Mizzou Arena, meanwhile, has filled just 44 percent of its capacity this season.
Both Iowa State (averaging 11,806) and Texas Tech (averaging 9,374) have had more fans in the stands. Neither program has been nearly as successful in recent years as the Tigers have been. The Cyclones haven’t made the NCAA Tournament since 2005 and the Red Raiders have missed the big dance each of the last four seasons.
Even compared to programs around the country that have historically struggled on the court, MU’s attendance figures are alarmingly low. Nebraska, a program that hasn’t made the NCAA Tournament since 1998, is averaging 9,530 fans per game. Northwestern, a program that has never qualified for the Tournament, is averaging over 2,000 less per game than MU.
One factor hampering attendance is that Kansas City and St Louis are each home to thousands of MU alums, but it’s hard for fans to make the trip down Interstate 70 to Columbia on weeknights. But, according to the 2010 census, there are 108,500 people living in Columbia, making it the fourth most-populated Big 12 college town.
Student section member sophomore Cole Kennedy, said he was taken aback after seeing the statistics in this story.
“These numbers just make it pretty clear how lackluster our fan base has been, especially for a team doing so well,” Kennedy said. “It’s embarrassing.”
