It wasn't until recently that Tennessee actually turned a profit on womens basketball BUT it was done.
NOW here is the real kicker ... womens basketball IS expensive BUT it brings in more revenue than baseball. Of course when you add the numbers up, it is still a big money loser. However, compare top attendances in baseball and womens basketball. You will be shocked. Overall attendance, if it is not higher, it is very similar between baseball and womens basketball. That includes the fact that baseball plays more games ...
Compare the last five years attendance numbers. Womens basketball is growing faster than any other non-revenue sport. It isn't that far away.
Finally, compare the coverage on ESPN between womens basketball and any of the other non-revenue sports. While ESPN may be on the east coast (haven A for liberal thought) they do not make decisions without the almighty dollar in mind. They do not telivise the entire womens tournament for their health. NBC and ESPN do not telivise WNBA games for fun nor do RICH NBA owners dump money into an investment they do not think has potential. We are talking evil rich folks here ... Mister Burns if you will. Do you DOUBT their evil schemes enough to believe that they do anything they do not think will have a future return????
Given its growth it makes sense of all womens sports to pour the most money into. It kills two birds with one stone. It has the long term potential to be a money maker AND it helps keep the Title IX police away.