The Hawkeyes’ tournament opener was intense.
The Iowa Hawkeyes started March Madness in the way everyone expected: with a dominant victory against 16th-seeded Holy Cross. However, it was not exactly a 40-minute stroll in the park for the Hawkeyes, who had to shake off some figurative rust after nearly two weeks off since winning the Big Ten Tournament.
Sure, Iowa triumphed 91-65 and advanced to the second round of the 2024 Women’s NCAA Tournament, but phenom Caitlin Clark had a miserable afternoon by her own high standards. For a moment, it appeared like she might have her poorest shooting performance of the season, and the all-
The all-time collegiate points leader let her emotions get the best of her before the Hawkeyes blasted the game open.
Iowa began slowly, and Clark lost her cool.
The Hawkeyes led by two points after one quarter, but the #1 seed struggled to get going after not playing since a thrilling overtime triumph over Nebraska on March 10. Despite Iowa’s 18-point halftime lead, which came after holding Holy Cross to nine points in the second quarter, Clark remained plainly dissatisfied with her performance.
caitlin clark complaining to the officials & her dad just telling her to shut up has me in tears man😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/5JnhMPn4lg
— cj (@wsgadlibs) March 23, 2024
Clark aroused the ire of none other than her father, Brent, who objected to her strident criticism of the Iowa City officiating crew shortly before halftime. Brent instructed his daughter, one of the best college basketball players ever, to “shut up” and stop arguing with the refs, especially with a 19-point advantage.
Despite setting up her teammates for easy points and having an impact on the glass, Clark missed nine of her first 12 shot attempts and was on track for her poorest shooting performance (by percentage) of her historic 2023/24 season. Clark, a fierce competitor, asked much more of herself after such a poor start.
Hawkeyes found their path.
Iowa easily defeated scrappy Holy Cross, leading by as many as 31 points before winning by 26. Clark finished 8-of-19 from the floor, making five of her last seven shot attempts, and scoring 27 points, leading all players.
Even when he wasn’t scoring, Clark’s playmaking abilities helped Iowa pull away in the second quarter. She ended with ten assists and eight rebounds, flirting with a triple-double in the tournament’s first game.
Caitlin Clark went OFF vs. Holy Cross 🔥
27 PTS
10 AST
8 REBIowa advances to the 2nd round ‼️ pic.twitter.com/qdwalUrYDW
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 23, 2024
Clark and the Hawkeyes are now in the second round, waiting to see who wins the West Virginia-Princeton game in order to return to the national championship. Even if it wasn’t always nice, Iowa made the first step back to the national championship on Saturday, and the Hawkeyes intend to improve even more in their next game on Monday.
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