Iowa sinks first shot.
After South Carolina won the tip-off and missed the first shot, the Hawkeyes' Kate Martin sank a three to give Iowa its first points.
NASA women on court
The women of NASA raise the American flag on the court during the national anthem minutes before tipoff.
”@astro_watkins And some amazing women at NASA started this program. @madness_wbb Championship game! ” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson Posted in X.
“They represent a great group of employees who allow us to inspire through discovery.”
There's an Iowa crowd in Cleveland.
CLEVELAND — The crowd at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse is decidedly pro-Iowa and gets much louder as chants of “Go Hawks” echo throughout the arena with the band playing during the team's warm-ups on the court. It has been proven that it is.
Keys to Iowa State's victory
There are several keys to Iowa State winning its first national championship:
clarke effect
Clark always seemed to be at his best on the brightest stage. She had 41 points, eight assists and six rebounds in last year's Final Four win over South Carolina. Her coach is at a loss for words to describe her brilliance on the court. The University of Iowa will need one more big game to have any hope of capping a historic career with a national championship. In addition to her length and athleticism, South Carolina has the depth to utilize Clark for shots.
rebound
Iowa State is averaging 41.6 rebounds per game, about five fewer rebounds than South Carolina. The Hawkeyes can't let South Carolina dominate the boards like they did last year when the Shamcocks were outrebounded 49-25. They have punished opponents with easy putbacks this season, but that will be difficult for Iowa to overcome.
“Going into that game last year and saying we're going to beat South Carolina on the glass, that probably doesn't happen every time we play South Carolina. But we've got to be able to handle it the best way we can.” Clark said. “And I think we did that against LSU. And that's where we get the confidence. We just try to weather the glass storm and try to come up with as big a storm as we can.”
South Carolina's keys to winning
There are several keys to South Carolina winning its third national championship, its second in three seasons.
inside dominance
South Carolina has a clear advantage inside, led by 6-foot-7 center Camila Cardoso. He recorded 14 points and 14 rebounds in last season's semifinals. She just got even better. Cardoso isn't alone in the Shamcocks, who have talented post players like Ashlyn Watkins and Chloe Kitts.
depth
The Shamcocks have always dominated their opponents with their excellent play off the bench. South Carolina's reserves are outscored by 27.6 points in the postseason and 21.9 points on the year. The Gumcocks have seven players averaging at least eight points per game, and the reserve matched his 30 points and 25 rebounds in Friday's win over North Carolina State. Iowa State won the University vs. Union game and only got three points from the reserve team.
“We picked them off the bench, and we didn't miss a beat,” Raven Johnson said. “And that's what makes us a great team.”
Women's Championship expected to break viewership records
The NCAA Women's Basketball National Championship is set to break viewership records as star athletes and expanded television coverage bring more fans to the sport than ever before.
On Saturday, TickPick announced that the “admission fee” for today's women's finals would be $555, a record amount.
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Clark was invited to Team USA's training camp.
Hawkeyes star Caitlin Clark was invited to the Team USA women's basketball team's training camp, but was unable to attend because her team had advanced to the Final Four and qualified for the championship.
Iowa State defeated Colorado State on March 30 and LSU two days later to advance to Friday's Final Four game, defeating U-Conn 71-69. Training camp ran from Wednesday to Friday.
In announcing the invitation, Olympic said the training camp is a step in Team USA's process to select members who will play for the U.S. team in Paris this summer.
Clark said last week that she was honored to have her invitation extended.
“The people on that roster are people I admired and have admired growing up. Just having an extended invitation to camp is something I should be proud of, celebrate, and enjoy.” '' she said, according to the Associated Press.
Clark broke many records this season and established himself as one of college basketball's greatest players.
It's been a great season for Caitlin Clark.
The Hawkeyes guard spent his senior year sinking threes and breaking records. Let's take a look at all the titles she currently holds as she enters her final college basketball game, according to the NCAA.
- Dec. 30: Clark sets NCAA assist records and becomes the first Division I college basketball player, male or female, to score at least 3,000 points, at least 900 assists and at least 800 rebounds.
- Jan. 31: Clark scores 35 points against Northwestern, becoming the No. 1 scorer in Big Ten history.
- Feb. 11: Clark reaches 1,000 career assists, a feat that joins her on a club where only five others have scored more than 3,000 points.
- Feb. 15: Clark passes Kelsey Plumb as the all-time points leader in women's Division I.
- February 28: Clark scores 3,650 points, passing Lynette Woodward as major college women's basketball's leading scorer. She also broke her single-season three-point shooting record.
- March 3: Clark becomes the leading men's or women's scorer in Division I college basketball history, significantly breaking Pete Maravich's 54-year record.
- March 8: Clark passes Stephen Curry for the most 3-pointers made in a single season in NCAA Division I basketball history.
- March 25: Clark defeats Plum (again) to become the most points scored in a single season with 1,113 points.
- April 1: Clark retains the title for most 3-pointers made in the women's NCAA Tournament, breaking Diana Taurasi's record.
Less than an hour left until tip-off
CLEVELAND — With less than an hour left until the game starts, the crowd is pouring into Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.
University of Iowa's Marshall says he received 'hate comments' after drawing late foul against University of Iowa
Iowa State guard Gabby Marshall received “hateful comments” Saturday from people angry about her role in a controversial foul call late in the Hawkeyes' Final Four win over UW. said.
Marshall said she responded by “sort of” deleting social media apps from her phone.
With 3.9 seconds left and UW leading by one point, the referee called Huskies forward Aliyah Edwards for an illegal screen on Marshall. Iowa won 71-69 on Friday night, earning a berth in the title game against undefeated South Carolina on Sunday, but the Huskies never got the ball back.
Marshall was trying to guard college star Paige Bueckers, but Edwards set a screen to create space for Bueckers to take a shot. When Marshall arrived, Edwards was not set up as required by the rules, and the 5-foot-9 Marshall caught part of the 6-3 Edwards' left elbow.
The contact was enough to pull the whistle, and Marshall reacted animatedly, pointing down the court as if to say “our ball.”
This series of actions attracted much criticism from fans and onlookers.