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Caitlin Clark leads Hawkeyes to Big Ten Tournament title in game for the ages

dane mizutani, pioneer press
·4 min read

Trailing by a seemingly insurmountable deficit with a couple of minutes left, it looked like it was all over for the Iowa Hawkeyes women’s basketball team.

Not enough time to mount a comeback. Thanks for coming out. Goodnight.

Then the superstar that is Caitlin Clark woke up.

She nailed a nasty stepback jumper to cut into the deficit, assisted on a fastbreak layup to Hannah Stuelke, then found Kate Martin in the corner for a shot from long range.

As the clock ticked away in the final minute — 50 seconds, 40 seconds, 30 seconds — Clark went into attack mode. She fought her way into the paint, muscled up a contested layup, and tied the game to force overtime

The extra session served as Clark’s coronation.

With the Hawkeyes trailing once again, she went back to the stepback jumper, sinking the shot to give her team a lead it would not relinquish. She intercepted a pass on the next possession and knocked down a pair of free throws. She finished the game with another steal for good measure, then chucked the ball into the crowd as the final buzzer sounded and confetti rained down.

That closing stretch by Clark ensured that for the third straight year the Hawkeyes finished the Big Ten tournament hoisting the hardware.

No. 2 seed Iowa earned a 94-89 win over No. 5 seed Nebraska in a game for the ages on Sunday afternoon at Target Center. A heavy emphasis on the word earned.

“We never gave up,” Clark said. “That’s what I’m the most proud of honestly.”

There was no reason to give up. Not with Clark capable of going en fuego at a moment’s notice. She makes anything seem possible.

This was the latest master class from Clark as she finished with 34 points, seven rebounds, and 12 assists. She shook off a rough shooting performance to start the game and proved she’s undoubtedly the best player in the nation.

Maybe the best player that has ever played women’s college basketball.

That said, Clark couldn’t have done it without her teammates, as Stuelke finished with 25 points, Martin chipped in with 13 points, Sydney Affolter recorded 11 points and 11 rebounds, and Gabbie Marshall played incredible defense on the perimeter.

“We just found a way to win,” Clark said. “That speaks to the team that we have.”

It also speaks to how much Clark has matured throughout her career. She started the game 0 for 9 from beyond the arc, unable to get anything going, and pressing seemingly whenever she touched the ball.

In a past life Clark would’ve let her early struggles define the rest of the game. She wouldn’t have been able to move past it even a couple of years ago. It would’ve completely consumed her, and it probably would’ve cost the Hawkeyes in the process.

“I was never able to let it go and move on to the next,” Clark said. “That was really something I always struggled with and something I knew I had to get better at for this team to be where we wanted to be.”

The mental toughness allowed Clark to lead a furious charge with the Hawkeyes trailing 75-67 with 2 minutes, 38 seconds left in regulation.

It started when she hit a stepback jumper to cut the deficit to 75-70 to get the crowd back into it. Asked about that particular shot, Clark replied, “I think it gave us some life more than anything.”

After a couple of big plays from Stuelke and Martin, respectively, Clark took control of the ball knowing she needed to score. She put her head down, went to work, and ultimately tied the score at 77-77. That capped a frantic 10-2 run during which Caitlin either scored or assisted on every single basket.

“This team is never out of a game,” Clark said. “We have the offensive firepower to be in any game, and we all believed that.”

It’s easy to believe with Clark on the court. She has constantly rewarded fans for their faith throughout her career, and this was no different. She took over in overtime to send the Hawkeyes into the NCAA tournament on a high note with a No. 1 seed likely on the way.

“If we want to reach our goals in March, we are going to find way to win that aren’t always pretty,” Clark said. “Just proud of our group. We weathered every storm we had. We kept fighting.”

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