Despite a roster overhaul and a general lack of Division I experience among the squad, the Colorado men’s basketball team has shown significant signs of progress since tipping off the season seven weeks ago.
It’s been a home-heavy slate so far, too. Yet few people have witnessed the Buffaloes’ early growth in person.
After the Buffs capped nonconference play with a win against Bellarmine on Saturday, head coach Tad Boyle pivoted from a question about a boisterous crowd spurred by an Alamo Bowl sendoff for CU football and an appearance by Travis Hunter’s Heisman Trophy to comment on the state of the program’s attendance through nonconference play.
Simply put, there have been plenty of available seats at the CU Events Center. And at the dawn of the NIL era in college basketball, it’s a concern on the forefront of Boyle’s mind.
“Quite frankly, I think the core of our fan base for the basketball program has been very loyal and good. But if people think that the nonconference attendance is going to allow us to be successful in the Big 12 as we move forward, unless it changes, they’re sorely mistaken. We’ve got to fill this thing up. Starting December 30th,” Boyle said after the Bellarmine win.
“(Bellarmine) was a step in the right direction. (Saturday) was a great day to honor the football team and Travis and Shedeur. Had no problem with that at all.”
Boosted by the festivities surrounding the football team, the attendance of 7,684 against Bellarmine was the second-highest of the season at the Events Center. Through eight home games, the Buffs are averaging just 6,435 fans.
That’s currently on pace to mark the lowest average attendance of the 15-season Boyle era, although attendance figures are certain to climb with the marquee matchups on the way in Big 12 play, beginning with CU’s league opener against No. 3 Iowa State on Monday (7 p.m., CBS Sports Network). The Buffs host four other teams ranked in this week’s AP Top 25 in No. 7 Kansas (Feb. 24), No. 15 Houston (Feb. 8), No. 17 Cincinnati (Jan. 15) and No. 25 Baylor (Feb. 22). In the five top 25 games played at the Events Center since the mostly fan-less COVID season of 2020-21, attendance has averaged 9,554.
The Buffs host two other teams currently receiving top 25 votes in West Virginia (Jan. 12) and Arizona State (Jan. 28), and CU hosts another big-draw matchup with BYU on Jan. 21. The attendance of 8,913 for BYU’s previous visit on Dec. 12, 2015, hasn’t been topped in a non-Colorado State nonconference home game since.
Yet while attendance certainly will rise in January and February, the early returns have continued a recent box office trend for the Buffs. Following the COVID season, the Buffs averaged 7,141 fans in the 2021-22 regular season, at the time the lowest since an average of 6,900 in Boyle’s first season of 2010-11. CU then averaged a Boyle-era low 6,752 in 2022-23.
Last year’s NCAA Tournament team pushed that average attendance figure back up to 7,531, but even the home win against CSU three weeks ago drew only 9,143 fans. That’s over 1,900 under capacity at the Events Center and nearly 900 fewer than the attendance for CSU’s previous visit two years ago.
“I would like to see this place sold out every night,” Boyle said. “Like it is in Ames, Iowa. Like it is in Lawrence, Kansas. Like it is in Waco, Texas, and all the places that we’re going to play. If it is, it is. If it isn’t, it isn’t. There’s nothing I can do about it. My job is to get our team better.”