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Caitlin Clark Had Fired-Up Message for Iowa Fans Before Huge Home Game vs. No. 3 UCLA

Karl Rasmussen

Iowa guard Caitlin Clark cheers on teammates during a NCAA Big Ten Conference women's basketball game
Iowa guard Caitlin Clark cheers on teammates during a NCAA Big Ten Conference women's basketball game / Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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The Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team hosts No. 3 UCLA on Sunday in what is arguably the biggest game of the season for the program. Caitlin Clark wants the stadium to be bumping for the team.

Prior to tipoff from the Carver-Hawkeye Arena, Clark sent a message to Iowa fans encouraging them to make their presence felt throughout the afternoon.

"Get Carver LOUD for the girls today!!!!! Let’s go @IowaWBB," wrote Clark on X, formerly Twitter, prompting a response from the team's social media account.

The Hawkeyes enter Sunday's game as winners of six of their last seven. They lost to Ohio State on Monday to snap what was a six-game winning streak, and they'll hope to avoid dropping back-to-back games by staging what would be a major upset of the Bruins on their home court.

Earlier this month, Iowa hosted No. 4 USC in a similarly important game and pulled off a 76–69 victory.

The Hawkeyes will lean heavily on Lucy Olsen, as they have often done this year, if they're hoping to pull off the win on Sunday. Olsen is averaging 17.8 points and 5.1 assists while shooting 33.3% from three-point range.

UCLA has lost just one game this season, having been upended 70–61 by JuJu Watkins and USC on Feb. 13.

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Karl Rasmussen
KARL RASMUSSEN

Karl Rasmussen is a staff writer for the Breaking and Trending News team for Sports Illustrated. A University of Oregon alum who joined SI in February 2023, his work has appeared on 12up and ClutchPoints. Rasmussen is a loyal Tottenham, Jets, Yankees and Ducks fan.

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