Why Denver Is One of the Worst Cities for March Madness in the USA

Today, Monday, March 13, basketball fans across the country are gearing up for the start of the annual NCAA basketball tournament popularly known as March Madness. But according to a new survey, Mile High hoops fans are at an enormous disadvantage when it comes to experiencing and enjoying this annual sports ritual. According to the WalletHub report, Denver is the fourth worst large city for March Madness and ranks at 276 out of 291 total communities analyzed, barely ahead of Kennesaw, Georgia, Poughkeepsie, New York and Colorado Springs, which finished at 280.

The full list is below. But Denver's lousy numbers in major categories used by WalletHub to determine the best and worst March Madness cities clearly contributed to its poor performance overall. The city landed in 177th place for winning percentage by teams from here, 226th in conference championships, 285th in social-media engagement and 274th in stadium capacity.

The NCAA would like Denver to be swept up in March Madness fever to a greater degree, as indicated by the staging of early tournament rounds at the Pepsi Center last year. Teams that appeared included Purdue, Arkansas Little Rock, Iowa State, Iona, Seton Hall, Gonzaga, Utah and Fresno State. But no Denver teams actually took part, either here or elsewhere; the closest squad that made the cut in 2016 was the University of Colorado Boulder, which wound up as an eighth seed but was promptly eliminated by Connecticut.

To learn more about Denver's March Madness woes, we reached out to WalletHub analyst Jill Gonzalez. Here's part of that conversation, as conducted via e-mail.

Westword: Denver is generally considered to be one of the best sports cities in the country. Why did it fare so badly when it comes to March Madness?

Jill Gonzalez: Denver didn't fare too well across the board, from team performance to fan engagement.

Is one of the main reasons for Denver's poor performance the lack of a Denver team that regularly competes at a high level in the NCAA tournament?

Denver was dragged down on the overall rankings largely because of its team performance. It ranked 177th for its win percentage over the past three seasons, at just 47.7 percent. This season alone, it has zero regular-season conference wins, ranking 226th.

The closest teams to the Denver area that tend to go to the NCAA or NIT tournaments are the University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado State University and the Air Force Academy. Do your numbers suggest that despite the teams' proximity to Denver, fans in Denver proper don't follow them that closely or have a great deal of interest in them?

Our numbers addressed each of those schools separately, under their own cities.

Denver scored badly among communities as a whole, as well as among large cities. Are there other large cities that aren't home to basketball powerhouses that score better than Denver, and if so, what are some examples?

Because team performance was heavily weighted in this report, the better a team has been recently, the better the city fared overall. However, fan engagement, ticket prices and stadium capacity all could boost a city up, despite how its team has been playing lately.

Is there anything Denver can do to move up in the March Madness rankings beyond having a school in the immediate area suddenly improve to the point where more residents are engaged?

For the purposes of this report, unfortunately, no. We may include data on sports bars and viewership rates in the future, where Denver could see a bump in the numbers.

Continue to see the complete WalletHub countdown, which shows graphically how bad a March Madness city Denver was judged to be. Click to see the full report.

Best and worst March Madness cities according to WalletHub:

Overall Rank	City	Total Score
1	Chapel Hill, NC	52.82
2	Los Angeles, CA	50.41
3	Durham, NC	49.3
4	Bloomington, IN	46.76
5	Philadelphia, PA	46.03
6	East Lansing, MI	43.67
7	Lawrence, KS	43.35
8	Lexington, KY	42.48
9	Storrs, CT	42.47
10	Cullowhee, NC	41.82
11	New York, NY	40.57
12	Morgantown, WV	38.29
13	Emmitsburg, MD	37.68
14	West Point, NY	37.59
15	Kingston, RI	37.23
16	Norman, OK	36.55
17	Ann Arbor, MI	36.14
18	College Park, MD	35.65
19	Cincinnati, OH	35.12
20	Provo, UT	35.11
21	Washington, DC	35.04
22	Houston, TX	34.73
23	Rosemont, IL	34.05
24	Loretto, PA	33.69
25	Charlottesville, VA	33.67
26	Itta Bena, MS	33.59
27	Ames, IA	33.13
28	Nacogdoches, TX	33.12
29	Fayette, MS	32.84
30	Salt Lake City, UT	32.8
31	Princess Anne, MD	32.4
32	Lewiston, NY	32.13
33	Murray, KY	31.94
34	Blacksburg, VA	31.75
35	Athens, OH	31.72
36	Pullman, WA	31.29
37	Ruston, LA	31.09
38	Baton Rouge, LA	30.69
39	Boston, MA	30.53
40	Milwaukee, WI	30.18
41	Morehead, KY	29.94
42	Austin, TX	29.82
43	Nashville, TN	29.73
44	Allegany, NY	29.72
45	Albany, NY	29.7
46	Dayton, OH	29.69
47	Hamilton, NY	29.61
48	South Bend, IN	29.57
49	Ogden, UT	29.35
50	Fayetteville, AR	29.34
51	Baltimore, MD	29.34
52	Huntsville, TX	29.24
53	Stillwater, OK	29.23
54	Orangeburg, SC	29.12
55	Eugene, OR	29.01
56	Gainesville, FL	28.97
57	Boiling Springs, NC	28.91
58	College Station, TX	28.82
59	Williamsburg, VA	28.69
60	Lexington, VA	28.67
61	Buies Creek, NC	28.2
62	San Francisco, CA	28.11
63	Providence, RI	27.95
64	Ypsilanti, MI	27.75
65	Norfolk, VA	27.62
66	Terre Haute, IN	27.43
67	Lewisburg, PA	27.41
68	Omaha, NE	27.35
69	New Rochelle, NY	27.34
70	Champaign, IL	27.33
71	Richmond, KY	27.21
72	Highland Heights, KY	27.09
73	Toledo, OH	27.05
74	Memphis, TN	27.03
75	Bowling Green, KY	26.95
76	Stony Brook, NY	26.9
77	Durham, NH	26.85
78	Green Bay, WI	26.83
79	Grambling, LA	26.83
80	Valparaiso, IN	26.79
81	Natchitoches, LA	26.4
82	San Diego, CA	26.37
83	San Antonio, TX	26.35
84	Mount Pleasant, MI	26.3
85	Conway, SC	26.29
86	Columbia, SC	26.25
87	Phoenix, AZ	26.17
88	Worcester, MA	26.17
89	Montgomery, AL	26.08
90	Lafayette, LA	25.99
91	Moraga, CA	25.94
92	Hanover, NH	25.91
93	Troy, AL	25.68
94	Fargo, ND	25.65
95	Rock Hill, SC	25.65
96	Irvine, CA	25.61
97	West Lafayette, IN	25.54
98	Dallas, TX	25.44
99	Bowling Green, OH	25.38
100	Seattle, WA	25.35
101	Boulder, CO	25.29
102	Fort Collins, CO	25.25
103	Johnson City, TN	25.21
104	Arlington, TX	25
105	Buffalo, NY	24.96
106	Asheville, NC	24.91
107	Little Rock, AR	24.9
108	Newark, NJ	24.83
109	Chicago, IL	24.83
110	El Paso, TX	24.82
111	Davidson, NC	24.8
112	Fort Wayne, IN	24.77
113	Statesboro, GA	24.69
114	Harrisonburg, VA	24.62
115	Stanford, CA	24.58
116	Charleston, IL	24.51
117	Wilmington, NC	24.5
118	Orem, UT	24.43
119	Las Cruces, NM	24.43
120	Portland, OR	24.27
121	Farmville, VA	24.25
122	Tulsa, OK	24.2
123	Monroe, LA	24.15
124	Kent, OH	24.12
125	DeKalb, IL	24.07
126	Tucson, AZ	24.03
127	Fort Myers, FL	24
128	Martin, TN	23.96
129	Tempe, AZ	23.72
130	Annapolis, MD	23.69
131	Boise, ID	23.67
132	Santa Barbara, CA	23.67
133	Greensboro, NC	23.66
134	Newark, DE	23.64
135	Fairfield, CT	23.54
136	Homewood, AL	23.54
137	Denton, TX	23.36
138	Normal, IL	23.34
139	Indianapolis, IN	23.3
140	Thibodaux, LA	23.27
141	Hammond, LA	23.24
142	Hampton, VA	23.24
143	Flagstaff, AZ	23.21
144	Murfreesboro, TN	23.18
145	Greeley, CO	23.16
146	Jacksonville, FL	23.13
147	Lawrence, NJ	23.04
148	Las Vegas, NV	23.02
149	Towson, MD	22.98
150	Hempstead, NY	22.98
151	Miami, FL	22.98
152	Bakersfield, CA	22.94
153	State College, PA	22.92
154	Spokane, WA	22.86
155	Abilene, TX	22.78
156	Sacramento, CA	22.76
157	Tuscaloosa, AL	22.74
158	Huntington, WV	22.68
159	Long Beach, CA	22.68
160	Raleigh, NC	22.65
161	Madison, WI	22.65
162	Pittsburgh, PA	22.61
163	Syracuse, NY	22.49
164	Clarksville, TN	22.47
165	Macon, GA	22.42
166	Oxford, MS	22.4
167	Pine Bluff, AR	22.34
168	Grand Forks, ND	22.29
169	Vermillion, SD	22.13
170	Oxford, OH	22.05
171	Lowell, MA	22.01
172	Laramie, WY	22
173	New Orleans, LA	21.99
174	Charlotte, NC	21.98
175	Clemson, SC	21.93
176	San Marcos, TX	21.93
177	Louisville, KY	21.83
178	Muncie, IN	21.83
179	Honolulu, HI	21.74
180	Elon, NC	21.58
181	Winston-Salem, NC	21.58
182	Greenville, SC	21.53
183	Macomb, IL	21.48
184	Edwardsville, IL	21.47
185	Cheney, WA	21.41
186	Reno, NV	21.31
187	Charleston, SC	21.3
188	Greenville, NC	21.21
189	Akron, OH	21.18
190	Corpus Christi, TX	21.16
191	DeLand, FL	21.12
192	Princeton, NJ	21.03
193	Iowa City, IA	20.96
194	Conway, AR	20.86
195	Logan, UT	20.86
196	San Luis Obispo, CA	20.73
197	Detroit, MI	20.7
198	Huntsville, AL	20.7
199	Springfield, MO	20.67
200	Orono, ME	20.62
201	Kansas City, MO	20.61
202	Dover, DE	20.51
203	Bozeman, MT	20.38
204	Cleveland, OH	20.28
205	Beaumont, TX	20.25
206	Stockton, CA	20.11
207	Coral Gables, FL	20.11
208	Spartanburg, SC	19.88
209	Waco, TX	19.84
210	Starkville, MS	19.83
211	Des Moines, IA	19.63
212	Boca Raton, FL	19.58
213	Lubbock, TX	19.56
214	Richmond, VA	19.5
215	Birmingham, AL	19.43
216	Cedar City, UT	19.34
217	Edinburg, TX	19.31
218	Auburn, AL	19.14
219	Orlando, FL	19.07
220	St. Louis, MO	18.8
221	Lake Charles, LA	18.76
222	Youngstown, OH	18.57
223	Berkeley, CA	18.56
224	Evansville, IN	18.49
225	Cambridge, MA	18.43
226	Hartford, CT	18.37
227	Carbondale, IL	18.2
228	Knoxville, TN	17.98
229	Wichita, KS	17.9
230	Brookings, SD	17.86
231	New Haven, CT	17.86
232	Chattanooga, TN	17.63
233	Columbus, OH	17.63
234	San Jose, CA	17.47
235	Columbia, MO	17.08
236	Fullerton, CA	16.8
237	Binghamton, NY	16.68
238	Cedar Falls, IA	16.6
239	New Brunswick, NJ	16.49
240	Corvallis, OR	16.38
241	Rochester Hills, MI	16.35
242	Albuquerque, NM	16.2
243	Burlington, VT	16.18
244	Amherst, MA	15.94
245	Atlanta, GA	15.89
246	Manhattan, KS	15.57
247	Fort Worth, TX	15.33
248	Tallahassee, FL	15.04
249	Radford, VA	15
250	Evanston, IL	14.95
251	Missoula, MT	14.6
252	Prairie View, TX	13.91
253	Boone, NC	13.85
254	Long Branch, NJ	13.81
255	Athens, GA	13.59
256	Malibu, CA	13.54
257	High Point, NC	13.36
258	Kalamazoo, MI	12.9
259	Fresno, CA	12.7
260	Moscow, ID	12.61
261	Lincoln, NE	12.35
262	Cookeville, TN	12.11
263	Easton, PA	11.84
264	Cape Girardeau, MO	11.41
265	Bethlehem, PA	11.34
266	Fairfax, VA	10.93
267	Hattiesburg, MS	10.72
268	Pocatello, ID	10.59
269	Davis, CA	10.43
270	Minneapolis, MN	10.09
271	Jonesboro, AR	9.98
272	Santa Clara, CA	9.96
273	Mobile, AL	9.83
274	Jacksonville, AL	9.78
275	North Charleston, SC	9.65
276	Denver, CO	9.63
277	Jersey City, NJ	9.35
278	Savannah, GA	9.32
279	Kennesaw, GA	9.14
280	Colorado Springs, CO	9.13
281	Jackson, MS	9.1
282	Ithaca, NY	8.21
283	Poughkeepsie, NY	8.21
284	Lynchburg, VA	8.15
285	Riverside, CA	8.05
286	Hackensack, NJ	7.99
287	Clinton, SC	7.98
288	Daytona Beach, FL	7.39
289	Peoria, IL	7.38
290	Tampa, FL	6.45
291	New Britain, CT	5.38