Iowa's Caitlin Clark Scores 23 in First Half of Big Ten Tournament Championship

Iowa junior guard Caitlin Clark nearly outscored all of Ohio State in the first half of the Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament championship as she cashed in 23 while the Buckeyes collectively scored 24 points.

© Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Iowa junior guard Caitlin Clark thrives off of a competitive environment when there's a trophy involved. In the first half of the Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament championship versus Ohio State, she dropped 23 points nearly outscoring Ohio State's entire team.

The Buckeyes finished the half shooting 25 percent from the field for 24 points while Iowa shot 72 percent for 61 points. This is looking a lot like déjà vu as the Hawkeyes captured the tournament title last season defeating Indiana 74-67.

If the Hawkeyes get it done Sunday, it'll be their third tournament championship in just five years under head coach Lisa Bluder. 

In this year's tournament, Clark has scored 67 points, and that total will only go up as there's still a whole other half to play in Target Center.

The Buckeyes are having tremendous trouble with Clark's lethal three-point game as her step-back triple with too much space to work with is almost sure to go down.

So far, three Ohio State players tally seven points including starting sophomore guard Taylor Thierry, who's already plagued with three fouls. Perhaps senior guard Taylor Mikesell has had the most success thus far as she's 3-for-5 from the field for seven points.

In Saturday's semifinals, the Buckeyes overcame a 24-point deficit to defeat top-seeded Indiana, but the biggest comeback in Big Ten history probably won't happen twice in a row as Clark is showing no signs of slowing down.

As of this matchup, she's now the tournament's all-time leader in assists with 22 and counting. Clark is also the reigning Tournament MVP from last season and this year's Big Ten Player of the Year.

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