A little over a year ago, Joel Morgan had never been to a women’s basketball game. When the 54-year-old data scientist in Eugene, Ore., ventured to a matchup of top-10 college teams—Oregon and Mississippi State—he was captivated.

Oregon point guard Sabrina Ionescu scored 29 points and led the Ducks to victory before a raucous crowd. “I suddenly realized what I’d been missing all this time,” Morgan recalled. He has been to every Oregon home game since, and this month traveled to Arizona to see Ionescu and the Ducks play.

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