It’s been nearly two weeks since Iowa captured back-to-back Big Ten Tournament championships by dismantling Ohio State, 105-72.
Caitlin Clark and the Hawkeyes were magical, racing away from the Buckeyes in front of a rowdy Iowa traveling party inside the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn. Clark tracked down her fourth triple-double of the season, pouring in 30 points, dishing out 17 assists and grabbing 10 rebounds to lead the rout.
Monika Czinano had a big day as well, scoring 26 points and reeling in seven rebounds. Kate Martin also added 13 points in Iowa’s conference title victory.
While Iowa (26-6, 15-3 Big Ten) was perceived as one of the top teams in the running for a No. 1 seed, the Hawkeyes instead were awarded a No. 2 seed in the Seattle 4 Region of the 2023 NCAA Tournament. Stanford earned the final No. 1 seed and the Hawkeyes will be on a collision course if the bracket goes according to plan.
It all starts this afternoon against No. 15 seed Southeastern Louisiana (21-9, 14-4 Southland Conference). The Lions enter the tournament after rallying back to top Lamar in the Southland Conference championship game, 66-57.
The Lions’ Taylor Bell scored 17 of her 22 points in the second half as Southeastern Louisiana outscored Lamar, 39-21, after halftime.
After a terrific regular season and championship run throughout the Big Ten Tournament, Iowa earns the right to open the NCAA Tournament inside its home arena. It’s the second year in a row that the Hawkeyes have begun the tournament inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Naturally, it didn’t take long for Hawkeye fans to scoop up tickets and turn this postseason affair into a sellout. In fact, it took just 53 minutes after tickets went on sell for the contest to become a sellout.
It should be a splendid environment for Iowa this afternoon. Here’s how Hawkeye fans can watch, stream and listen to this afternoon’s game against Southeastern Louisiana.