Her influence extends even to men’s basketball
More than an hour after an overtime loss to NC State ended his team’s amazing season, Jack Gohlke’s March joyride was far from finished. Fans in adjacent sections of PPG Paints Arena stood and applauded the Oakland guard, passionately chanting his name Saturday night as he entered the arena to see friends and family.
Gohlke, still in full gear, signed autographs and posed for photos as a crowd of Oakland supporters gathered in the aisle to greet him. His meteoric ascent to prominence was clear when a fan bearing a Caitlin Clark jersey delivered an exceptional message to Gohlke.
Jack Gohlke, who plays for Oakland, emerged as one of the NCAA men’s tournament’s top stars, obtaining multiple sponsorships after only one game. The comparison between Jack Gohlke and Caitlin Clark emphasizes the importance of women’s basketball in the larger sports landscape.
In just three days, Gohlke has gone from Horizon League anonymity to overnight sensation. The catch-and-shoot specialist featured on “SportsCenter” alongside Scott Van Pelt, amassed over 50,000 Instagram followers, and signed endorsement deals from TurboTax, OOFOS, and other firms.
Gohlke’s star turn began Thursday night, when he hit ten three-pointers against Kentucky, driving the 14th-seeded Golden Grizzlies to a surprising first-round NCAA tournament upset.
Multiple potential NBA guards followed Gohlke around screens in an attempt to keep him from getting clean looks, but they were unable to stop the graduate transfer from Division II Hillsdale College.
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