Where Purdue's Attendance Ranked for 2025-26 College Basketball Season

How good was Purdue's attendance at Mackey Arena during the 2025-26 season? It ranked in the top 20 for all college basketball.

The Purdue Boilermakers bench reacts to a call. | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

A seat in Mackey Arena is one of the toughest tickets to get these days. Purdue's recent success on the hardwood has resulted in 106 consecutive sellouts to catch the Boilermakers in action.

Purdue fans showed up in waves to catch the team in action again during the 2025-26 campaign. The Boilermakers averaged 14,876 fans for the year, which is 100% capacity and ranked No. 14 nationally.

How does Purdue's attendance compare to other teams in the Big Ten? Here's a complete look at the top 20 attendance figures, based on game averages, as shared by Hero Sports:

1. Kentucky Wildcats — 19,731 (96.3% capacity)
2. North Carolina Tar Heels — 19,499 (89.7% capacity)
3. Tennessee Volunteers — 19,251 (88.8% capacity)
4. Arkansas Razorbacks — 18,796 (97.9% capacity)
5. BYU Cougars — 18,073 (100.4% capacity)
6. Syracuse Orange — 17,726 (58.7% capacity)
7. Creighton Bluejays —16,636 (95.9% capacity)
8. North Carolina State Wolf Pack — 16,341 (82.9% capacity)
9. Indiana Hoosiers — 15,677 (91.0% capacity)
10. Louisville Cardinals — 15,396 (69.7% capacity)
11. Kansas Jayhawks —15,307 (100% capacity)
12. Wisconsin Badgers —15,230 (98.2% capacity)
13. Illinois Fighting Illini —14,919 (95.9% capacity)
14. Purdue Boilermakers — 14,876 (100% capacity)
15. Michigan State Spartans — 14,797 (100% capacity)
16. Nebraska Cornhuskers — 14,671 (97.8% capacity)
17. Marquette Golden Eagles —14,485 (82.8% capacity)
18. Arizona Wildcats — 14,297 (97.3% capacity)
19. Iowa State Cyclones —14,051 (98.5% capacity)
20. Alabama Crimson Tide —13,270 (98.5% capacity)

On Jan. 14, Purdue reached a new milestone by selling out 100 consecutive games. The program is hoping to continue its streak into the 2026-27 season.

Purdue's sellout streak dates back to 2019

The fans wear free t-shirts in a checkerboard pattern. | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

Fans have been flocking to Mackey Arena since 2019, selling out every game in West Lafayette since a Jan. 15, 2019, home game against Rutgers. The last non-sellout at Mackey was on Jan. 3, 2019, against Iowa.

Obviously, fans were not permitted into the building during the 2020-21 season because of COVID-19 concerns. But the Boilers have had a full crowd in the arena for every home game since that time.

Mackey Arena has been one of the most intimidating venues in college basketball over that time, too. Since the 2021-22 season, Purdue's record on its home floor is 73-10, good enough for a .879 winning percentage.

Purdue's 2025-26 campaign didn't go quite as planned in terms of its home success. The Boilers finished the season with a 13-5 record on its home floor, losing games to Iowa State, Illinois, Michigan, Michigan State and Wisconsin.

Before last year, Purdue's home record was 60-5, which included a perfect 25-0 record against non-conference foes. The Boilermakers have still only lost one non-conference game at home since the 2021-22 season (Iowa State).

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