Sports

Youngstown ranks low in best U.S. cities for college basketball fans rankings

By Chris Pugh Mahoning Matters
Youngstown State fans shown at recent game.
Youngstown State fans shown at recent game. YSU Athletics Communications

The Youngstown region has experienced a basketball resurgence over the past two years as the Youngstown State men’s basketball team have put together back-to-back 22 win seasons.

But the resurgence hasn’t been seen as much nationally.

The latest example of the oversight has been the national personal finance website WalletHub, which ranked Youngstown No. 211 out of 290 cities in its 2024’s Best Cities for College Basketball Fans rankings.

The group said the rankings were put together by the number of teams per city and the winning percentage of each to stadium capacity and social-media engagement.

Here are the top 5 teams in the rankings.

1. Los Angeles, CA



2. Philadelphia, PA



3. Storrs, CT



4. Durham, NC



5. Lexington, KY

In Ohio, Cincinnati ranks No. 33, followed by Athens at No. 38, Kent at No. 54, Dayton at No. 56, Akron at No. 57, Toledo at No. 59, Columbus at No. 104, Cleveland at No. 180 and Bowling Green at No. 207.

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