Hawkeyes Shooting for History in Elite 8

30 Years Since Program's Only Final Four Appearance

Iowa's starting five walks out for the opening tip before a game against Iowa State on Dec. 7, 2022 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa. (Rob Howe/HawkeyeNation.com)

Thirty. That number could ultimately define this season for the Iowa women’s basketball team.

A victory over Louisville Sunday in their Elite Eight marchup would give the Hawkeyes a school-record 30 victories. It would also earn the program’s first trip to the Final Four in 30 seasons.

This is Iowa’s fifth trip to the Elite Eight. The first three, in 1987, 1988 and 1993, came under Coach C. Vivian Stringer. That 1993 team reached the Final Four for the only time in program history.

Lisa Bluder has reached the Elite Eight for the second time as Iowa’s all-time winningest coach. The other trip came in 2019, when Megan Gustafson was the National Player of the Year, the player of the year in the Big Ten Conference and a consensus all-American.

A victory over Louisville would pretty much put a lock on the National Player of the Year conversation centering around Iowa’s mega-talented junior guard Caitlin Clark, who has already named a consensus all-American and player of the year in the Big Ten this season.

Clark’s gifts were on display for all to enjoy Friday, when she scored 31 points and added eight assists in a 87-77 Sweet 16 victory over Colorado. And her skills have clearly expanded beyond Iowa’s borders. Games played on a national platform, like ESPN, make her hard to miss. And national newspapers like the Washington Post, the New York Times and USA Today have expanded her legend with stories lately.

Clark has now scored 943 points this season, the second most in Big Ten history. The only player to score more was Gustafson, who had 1,001 in 2018-19. Her career ended one game short of the Final Four.

Clark has a chance to add to her resume by taking that final step Sunday in Seattle. In her 97-game career, she’s scored 2,605 points. Gustafson is Iowa’s career scoring leader with 2,804 points.

Clark currently ranks seventh in career scoring and eighth in career assists (770) in Big Ten history. She has 299 assists this season, and needs 132 more to become the conference’s all-time leader.

Her brilliant passing was on display again Friday against Colorado. Those assists, Bluder will tell you, is Clark’s strength and makes her different from any other scorer she’s coached. Her ability to drop a dime is what has taken her to the front of the player of the year conversation.

Earlier this season, those passing skills lived in the shadow of the buzz over Caitlin’s logo 3-pointers and her offensive skills. But the secret is out now.

Her scoring, of course, is a big part of her game. She’s poised to join Kelsey Mitchell of Ohio State (3,402 points) and Rachel Banham of Minnesota (3,093) as the only players in Big Ten history to reach 3,000 points.

Clark’s 31 against Colorado marked her 33rd game of 30 points or more in her career. Also a sneaky-good rebounder, she’s the only player in the nation with more than 925 points, 240 rebounds, 290 assists and 45 steals. She is averaging 26.8 points, 8.6 assists and 7.3 rebounds per game. Nothing shouts a complete game like those numbers.

Iowa, 29-6, has won seven straight games and 10 of the last 11, and is the No. 2 seed in the Seattle 4 Regional. Louisville, the No. 5 seed, has owned the Hawkeyes in their previous two games. The Cardinals won in Iowa City in the 2013-14 season, 83-53. They also won in Louisville the following season, 86-52. Louisville has reached the Elite Eight for a fifth straight season.

Only one of Iowa’s previous four trips to the Elite Eight ended on a winning note. That was in 1993 when the Hawkeyes beat Tennessee, 72-56, in the final of the Mideast Regional that was played at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Iowa lost to eventual national champion Baylor in the regional final in 2019, 85-53. The Hawkeyes also lost to Louisiana Tech in Monroe, La., 66-65, in 1987 and to Long Beach State in Long Beach, Calif., 98-78, in 1988.

Programs are defined by numbers, and Iowa owns some pretty impressive ones. Numbers like 29 NCAA appearances, 15 Big Ten Championships, nine Sweet 16s, five Elite Eights and a Final Four.

Adding another Final Four would only polish those numbers. And doing it 30 years later, while picking up a school-record 30 victory, would be the thing legends are made of.