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March Madness: Caitlin Clark powers No. 2 Iowa past No. 6 Colorado to reach Elite Eight

Iowa guard Caitlin Clark

Colorado had plenty of chances on Friday night.

The Buffaloes dominated inside in the first half while largely limiting one of the best players in the country, and mounted a big run late to keep things close in the final minutes.

It just wasn’t quite enough to knock off No. 2 seed Iowa.

The Hawkeyes, powered by another dominant 31-point showing from Caitlin Clark, closed out No. 6 Colorado 87-77 in their Sweet 16 matchup in the NCAA tournament at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle. The win moves the Hawkeyes into the Elite Eight for the second time in five years, and has them just a win away from making their first Final Four since 1993.

Iowa opened the night on a 15-5 run, and seemed poised to break the game open just halfway through the first quarter. The Buffaloes, however, cut the lead to a single point at the end of the period and then took the lead on an Aaronette Vonleh layup to start the second quarter. They briefly pushed their lead to 5, and then took a 1-point lead at halftime after Tameiya Sadler hit a buzzer-beating layup to close the second quarter.

Colorado star Frida Formann dropped 19 points and went 4-of-7 from behind the arc in the first 20 minutes. The Buffaloes had 12 offensive rebounds in the first half, too, but went just 1-of-9 on second-chance shots.

Finally, though, the Hawkeyes found their groove to start the third quarter. Iowa opened on a dominant 15-2 run, which was powered almost entirely by Clark. She even went on a solo 9-0 run during that stretch, and pushed Iowa to a 14-point lead at its peak. The Hawkeyes took an 11-point lead into the fourth after holding Colorado to just 13 points in the period.

The Buffaloes never went away. They cut the score to just two possessions in the final minutes after mounting a 14-6 run in a game that grew more physical by the minute. Jaylyn Sherrod made a layup with just less than two minutes left on the clock to bring the Buffaloes within 4 points, too. But that was the closest they got.

Monika Czinano responded with a layup after a huge pass from Clark inside, and then Iowa sank seven free throws — two of which came after Gabbie Marshall drew an intentional foul off an illegal screen — the rest of the way to take the 10-point win.

Formann finished with 21 points to lead Colorado, though her last bucket of the night, and only one of the second half, came in the opening minutes of the third quarter. Vonleh added 14 points, and Quay Miller finished with 12 points and 14 rebounds. The Buffaloes, who had 21 offensive rebounds, were playing in their first Sweet 16 in two decades.

Clark scored 18 of her points in the second half, and finished with 8 assists in the win. Czinano added 15 points and 7 rebounds, and Kate Martin finished with 16 points. The Hawkeyes will now take on No. 5 Louisville in the Elite Eight on Sunday. The Cardinals beat No. 8 Ole Miss in their Sweet 16 matchup on Friday night behind 21 points from star Hailey Van Lith to make it to their fifth-straight Elite Eight.