The Caitlin Clark show is off and running at the NCAA Tournament

By Laken Litman
Published

The Caitlin Clark show is officially off and running at the NCAA Tournament.

In one of the least surprising results of the first round, Clark, the superstar 6-foot point guard, led No. 2 seed Iowa to a lopsided 95-43 win over Southeastern Louisiana on Friday. In true fashion, Clark was electrifying and confident as she recorded another masterful performance. She scored 26 points on 9-of-14 shooting in 29 minutes. And she added 12 assists, seven rebounds and two steals to round out her stats.

As a team, Iowa shot 60% from the field and 40% from 3, going 8-of-20.

After not touching the ball for two minutes in the third quarter, Clark made a long 3 to give Iowa a 25-point lead. She didn’t celebrate — after all, hitting difficult shots is the norm for her. Instead, she looked borderline irritated that these were her first points of the quarter. Of course, she had 19 points by halftime.

Clark is one of two front-runners for national player of the year, the other being South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston. While the Iowa junior would surely love to win that award, this March Madness is more about revenge.

Last year, the Hawkeyes were also a No. 2 seed and dominated their first-round game with a mighty 98-67 victory over Illinois State. In the second round, however, they ran into tournament Cinderella Creighton and were upset 64-62 on their home floor. Clark, then just a sophomore, had a triple-double in the loss.

[Everything to know about the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament]

Iowa is fresh off another Big Ten championship and looks poised to make a deep run. The program has not been to the Final Four since 1993, but this team seems to have as good a chance as anybody else of getting there. There will certainly be some roadblocks — the Hawkeyes are in arguably the toughest region in the women’s tournament. If they beat No. 10 seed Georgia in the second round on Sunday, the Hawkeyes could face No. 3 Duke in the Sweet 16 and either No. 4 Texas or No. 1 Stanford in the Elite Eight. 

Make it to the Final Four? Then the Hawkeyes would very likely meet South Carolina, a team that could be destined to repeat as national champions. That matchup would pit the two best players in the country — Clark and Boston — against each other in an epic semifinal game.

On Friday, Clark did everything — she stole the ball, shot it, and dished it to her teammates, who she always seems to find in the right spot to make a play.

There’s a long way to go before a potential Iowa-South Carolina Final Four matchup dominates the storylines. But after one game, Clark and the Hawkeyes look fiery and poised to make it that far.

What else we’re watching

— No. 1 overall seed South Carolina blew out 16-seeded Norfolk State, 72-40. Zia Cooke scored 11 points and Boston had seven points, nine rebounds and two blocks as the Gamecocks extended their winning streak to 39 games, dating back to last year’s SEC Tournament. Coach Dawn Staley called out her team after the game, though, disappointed in their offensive performance in which they shot 38.9% from the floor. There was nothing wrong with South Carolina’s defensive effort however, as Norfolk State was 16-of-61 from the field and had 17 turnovers.

— No. 2 seed Maryland crushed No. 15 seed Holy Cross, 93-61. Brinae Alexander scored a team-high 18 points, while Abby Meyers added 16 points and Diamond Miller had 13 points and eight rebounds. The Terrapins were dominant from the start and the Crusaders succumbed to the pressure. Maryland scored 37 points off 24 Holy Cross turnovers, 11 of which came in the first quarter. The Terps also had an edge in points in the paint (44-24), assists (21-12) and steals (13-8).

— No. 3 seed Notre Dame beat No. 14 seed Southern Utah, 82-56. Maddy Westbeld stepped up and scored 20 points, while Sonia Citron added 14 plus a season-high six assists. The Fighting Irish had no trouble in this first-round matchup, but are dealing with the loss of All-American guard Olivia Miles, who will miss the NCAA Tournament with a knee injury. This will be a major storyline to follow through the tourney, as Notre Dame’s offense ran through Miles. How will they adapt without their star sophomore? Especially as tougher competition looms in a later potential Sweet 16 matchup against Maryland.

Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of "Strong Like a Woman," published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her on Twitter @LakenLitman.

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