Butler is the Belle of the Ball

Well, as they say, this weekend is the Big Dance over in Indianapolis, Indiana. That’s right, it is the 2010 NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four. In conjunction with Rasmussen Reports we’ve been tracking the various schools’ Share of Voice coverage and the numbers show that Butler is the crowd favorite.

2010 NCAA Final Four Share of Voice

Very little love for Michigan State but as someone who has watched these numbers come in, Michigan State has surged a good 1.5% share in the last couple of days. These numbers correspond nicely with Rasmussen’s outbound polling that show 33% rooting for Butler. What interesting is though 33% are rooting for Butler and the team is garnering a 31% share of coverage and chatter, only 13% believe that the 2010 Cinderella team will end up winning the tournament. This disbelief obviously isn’t keeping people from rooting or talking about Butler. However, a similar disbelief may be affecting share for another Midwest school. In our numbers, Michigan State comes in last at a 20% share. This enthusiasm gap also translates to doubts about the team’s ability to win – only 15% of people Rasmussen polled think Michigan State will win the tournament.

For more information, please see Rasmussen’s Final Four coverage.