Win or lose, the Caitlin Clark era at Iowa ends in Cleveland on Sunday.
Clark will look to add one final piece to her legacy as the Hawkeyes will take on undefeated South Carolina in the national championship. Head coach Lisa Bluder said that it hasn’t hit her yet that it’ll be her last game coaching Clark.
“That’s going to be rough because it’s been such a joy to coach her and to be part of watching women’s basketball grow and be excited about her,” Bluder said ahead of Sunday’s title game.
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Clark has made headlines for her entire collegiate career with her fiery play on the court, seemingly limitless range and playing up to the crowd. She’s heading to the WNBA Draft as the all-time leading scorer in college basketball history — but the one accolade that has eluded her during her career is a national championship. She gets one more shot against the Gamecocks on Sunday.
Still, Bluder was the one that recruited Clark to Iowa City as a five-star recruit out of high school. Clark proved her worth early on and has started all 138 games of her college career as she has dominated the game since arriving on campus. Bluder explained what sets her apart from the rest, and how she’s evolved her game over the past four years.
“It’s been her maturity. It’s been her leadership,” Bluder continued. “It’s this kind of game a few years ago she would have gotten so frustrated. She would have been really upset in the huddles. She wasn’t that at all. And sometimes people can feed off of her if she’s like emotionally in a bad way.
“So I thought that her composure in the huddle, even when things weren’t going well for her in the first half, was really a sign of her growth.”
As Clark moves on with her basketball career following Sunday’s matchup, the journey she’s taken the country on over the past four seasons will forever be remembered for her having rewritten record books and put her best effort on the court every night. Her accomplishments will forever speak for themselves — national champion or not.
Tip-off between the Hawkeyes and Gamecocks is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET live on ABC and ESPN. South Carolina is a 6.5-point betting favorites over Clark and Iowa heading into Sunday’s blockbuster title game, per FanDuel Sportsbook. The point total is set at 159.5.
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