Iowa senior guard Caitlin Clark remains to be making an attempt to win her first nationwide championship, and a troublesome draw within the NCAA Match makes it a larger problem.
On Sunday, the Hawkeyes (29-4) earned the No. 1 seed within the Albany 2 area, arguably the deepest within the match.
“Man, Iowa’s area is brutal,” wrote The Athletic’s Nicole Auerbach. “One in every of my associates who has spent her entire profession masking ladies’s school basketball stated she’s by no means seen a area this tough. Partly, it is due to the game’s elevated parity. But additionally … that is only a loaded area.”
It options No. 3 seed LSU, who beat the Hawkeyes within the nationwide championship final season, and No. 4 seed Kansas State. The Wildcats have gained two of their final three matchups in opposition to Iowa, holding Clark to 33.8 p.c from the sphere and 28.2 p.c from three, per Cindy Boren of The Washington Publish.
Regardless of the robust path, Clark — NCAA Division I’s all-time main scorer (3,771) — stays assured and famous how the group beat a number of opponents within the area earlier this season.
“It’s what it’s, and I feel that is what makes it so enjoyable,” the three-time All-American informed Boren. “We’ve got a win vs. Kansas State, we’ve a win in opposition to Colorado, we’ve a win vs. Louisville, we beat Drake. You should utilize that to your benefit.”
Clark not too long ago declared for the WNBA Draft. Anticipate her to boost her sport as she tries to seize that elusive title, which might additional her legacy as one of many biggest gamers in school basketball historical past. As of Monday, FanDuel provides Iowa the second-best nationwide title odds (+700) behind South Carolina.