Kate Martin has been a part of some incredible memories with the Iowa Hawkeyes.
The 6-foot guard was one of the driving forces behind the black and gold reaching the NCAA Tournament’s national championship game last season. In 2022-23, Martin averaged a career-high 7.7 points per game and shot a career-best 41.4% from behind the 3-point line.
The Edwardsville, Ill., product has started each of Iowa’s 100 games over the past three seasons and has played in 124 over the course of her Hawkeye career. Because of the COVID-19 eligibility exemption, Martin opted to take advantage of a final sixth season in the black and gold.
Alongside Caitlin Clark and Gabbie Marshall, Iowa has the makings of a backcourt nucleus that’s combined to start 299 games over the course of their Hawkeye careers.
Can this trio take Iowa all the way to the mountaintop of a championship in the 2023-24 women’s college basketball season? Martin certainly hopes so and is optimistic the best is still yet to come.
As Martin met with members of the media to preview the Hawkeyes’ upcoming overseas trip, the reality that this season is the finish line is sinking in. It means she’s entering every day with an appreciative, hard-working mindset.
“Yeah, it’s definitely a motivation. I don’t have any more eligibility, guys. Like, this is it. So, I’m trying to make it the best season ever. Every practice, this is my last fifth week of summer Thursday practice. You know, every day coming in with that mentality, so you might as well go as hard as you can,” Martin said with Hawkeye Report and a series of Iowa reporters last week.
Here’s Martin’s full meeting with the media. Plus, everything else she had to say below about practices so far and Iowa’s upcoming trip to Croatia and Italy.