Tag: TGIFridaysMadness

Sports stars, media react to Caitlin Clark’s otherworldly Final Four performance

Caitlin Clark is currently operating on another plane of basketball existence. Other sports stars and media took notice last night.

Caitlin Clark is not of this world.ย She’s from a different basketball dimension entirely.

The things she has done continue to wow. And we’ve never seen them done before.

On Friday night, Clark poured in 41 points, the most in a national semifinal in women’s basketball history. It’s the first time in women’s NCAA Tournament history a player has registered back-to-back 40-point games.

Remember, this comes on the heels of the tournament’s first 40-point triple-double. Saying that the West Des Moines native has been remarkable sells her performances short. She’s been unbelievable.

It’s no surprise some of the world’s biggest stars continue to take note. Even the best athletes in the world are in awe.

Here’s a smattering of the reaction to Clark’s latest masterpiece. This time in the Final Four against a team many thought couldn’t be toppled.

The 10 players who will decide this year’s Final Four

These ten players will decide Saturday’s Final Four matchups.

The wait is over. The Final Four is finally upon as on Saturday evening the West Region’s No. 4 UConn Huskies will take on the Midwest Region’s No. 5 Miami Hurricanes while the No. 5 San Diego State Aztecs out of the South Region will take on the No. 9 FAU Owls out of the East Region.

Below, we are going to take a look at ten players who will ultimately decide Saturday’s Final Four matchups. But before we delve into those players, let’s take a quick look at how each team got here.

No. 4 UConn Huskies (West Region):

The Huskies started their tournament off with an impressive 87-63 win over Richard Pitino and No. 13 Iona. In the Round of 32, they would knock off No. 5 Saint Mary’s (CA) 70-55 before taking down No. 8 Arkansas in blowout fashion 88-65. Prior to the blowout win for the Huskies, the Razorbacks had recently knocked off the region’s No. 1 seed and defending national champions, Kansas. After defeating Arkansas, the Huskies routed No. 3 Gonzaga in the Elite Eight 82-54. From the very start of this year’s tournament, the Huskies have been one of the most dominant teams.

No. 5 Miami Hurricanes (Midwest Region)

At one point in their tournament opener against No. 12 Drake, it seemed unlikely the Hurricanes would even make it out of the opening weekend, let alone get to the Final Four. How things can change in a short time. Since then, the Hurricanes would go on to beat No. 4 Indiana comfortably before defeating No. 1 Houston in the Sweet 16. In the Elite Eight, they would erase a double-digit deficit to come back and knock off No. 2 Texas 88-81.

The Hurricanes’ offensive has been nearly unstoppable all season, will UConn have enough to slow them down on Saturday?

No. 5 San Diego State Aztecs (South Region)

The Aztecs entered the tournament as a potential underdog that could make a deep run but very few expected a potential Final Four run out of Brian Dutcher’s program. The Aztecs started their tournament journey by knocking off a very tough No. 12 College of Charleston team 63-57. In the Round of 32, they would easily take care of No. 13 Furman, who was coming off an amazing last-second win over Virginia in the Round of 64. In the Sweet 16, No.1 Alabama found out just how good San Diego State is as the Aztecs smothered the Crimson Tide in a 71-64 win. Finally, in the Elite Eight, they would have another thriller with No. 6 Creighton 57-56.

No. 9 FAU Owls (East Region)

In a tournament that has been filled with Cinderella stories, FAU’s own Cinderella story is still going on. The Owls’ needed a last-second bucket to beat No. 8 Memphis in the opening round and then would beat No. 16 Farleigh Dickinson in the Round of 32. After having two games against quality but not elite opponents, FAU would have to rise to the challenge in the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight. In the Sweet 16, they would beat No.4 Tennessee 62-55 before winning 79-76 against a very scrappy and tough No. 3 Kansas State team in the Elite Eight.

Now without, further adieu here are the ten players who will decide Saturday’s Final Four matchups.

Geauxing to the ‘Ship, LSU moves on to the National Championship game

While neither team shot exceptionally well, the Tigers roared back in the fourth quarter to take the lead.

For the first time in women’s basketball program history, LSU is headed to the National Championship after defeating Virginia Tech 79-72 in the Final Four.

This is head coach Kim Mulkey’s second year with the program. While neither team shot exceptionally well, the Tigers roared back in the fourth quarter to take the lead. The Hokies had 18 turnovers to LSU’s seven turnovers and at the end of the day, that made the difference.

LSU’s Angel Reese broke her double-double record and recorded her 33rd double-double of the season. She now has more than any other player in Division I basketball, men’s or women’s. Hokies player Georgia Amoore also set a record of her own. She has the most 3-pointers in the NCAA women’s tournament at 23. She made four alone in this game.

Both schools made history for their school getting this far, but the Tigers will be advancing. They will face the winner of the South Carolina vs Iowa game. The Championship game will air at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, April 2 on ABC at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.

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Saturday betting odds for 2023 Women’s NCAA Tournament Finals

Here are tomorrow night’s betting odds for the Women’s NCAA Tournament Finals matchup between LSU and Iowa.

The 2023 Women’s NCAA Tournament Finals are nearly here as the LSU Tigers are now set to face the Iowa Hawkeyes after both programs earned Final Four wins on Friday. The former prevailed over the top-seeded Virginia Tech Hokies, 79-72, while the latter also upset a No. 1 seed in the South Carolina Gamecocks, who have been the sports’ juggernaut over the past few years, 77-73.

Now, the two teams are slated on Sunday to face each other in the finals to determine which school gets to take home the coveted national championship. Take a look below at the betting odds ahead of the culmination of the 2022-23 campaign. All times are in EDT and all lines are as of 10 a.m. Saturday.

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Game day betting odds for 2023 NCAA Tournament Final Four

Here are the betting lines for tonight’s Final Four games.

The field of 68 teams has been whittled down to four as the 2023 NCAA Tournament nears its end. This year’s Final Four is a historic one as no team seeded higher than fourth made it to NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, for the culmination of this year’s basketball extravaganza โ€” a list that features the No. 4 UConn Huskies, No. 5 Miami Hurricanes, No. 5 San Diego State Aztecs and No. 9 Florida Atlantic Owls.

Look below at BetMGM’s betting odds for the 2023 NCAA Tournament Final Four on Saturday along with the times of each game and which television channel to follow the action. All times are in EDT and all lines are as of 8:45 a.m. Saturday.

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Sights and sounds from the women’s Final Four open practices

A look at the women’s Final Four open practices from Alex Sinatra.

Tickets for the women’s Final Four are more expensive than the men’s Final Four. It’s almost like when you give more television time and devotes more resources to something, it grows. Who would have thought?

The women’s Final Four is taking place in Dallas, Texas, at the American Airlines Center. The venue held open practices for each of the four teams competing this year and it was free to the public on March 30.

Gates Open 10:00 a.m.
Virginia Tech Open Practice 11:00 a.m. – 11:50 a.m.
LSU Open Practice Noon – 12:50 p.m.
South Carolinaย Open Practice 1:00 p.m. – 1:50 p.m.
Iowaย Open Practice 2:00 p.m. – 2:50 p.m.

The Final Four takes place on March 31st, Division II and Division III national championships take place on Apr. 1, and the Division I national championship game takes place on Apr. 2.

For open practices, DJ Shawna was mixing the music and each team had a different musical vibe.

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Virginia Tech was the first to practice and this is the first time they are on the big Final Four stage. They went into March Madness as a No. 1 seed and are the 2023 ACC Womenโ€™s Champions. They matchup against LSU on March 31 at 6:00 p.m. CT.

Next up was “Bayou Barbie”, Angel Reese, and the rest of the LSU Tigers. The fans went wild during the entirety of LSU’s practices. ISDs in and around Dallas-Fort Worth bused in students to watch the festivities and experience the overall atmosphere of a Final Four.

LSU is seeded No. 3 in the tournament, but are playing like a No. 1 seed. Their last win to cement their place in the Final Four was against Miami and Mulkey indicated they didn’t shoot well in that game but rebounding and defense helped them advance.

The next team was South Carolina and the immaculately dressed Dawn Staley.

Staley indicated during an on-court interview with ESPN’s Holly Rowe that it takes a team of unselfish players to build this Gamecocks dynasty. She indicated for their team it takes “8-10 players to truly get those National Championships.”

Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes rounded out the open practices. Hawkeye fans were out in full force and made their presence known. Iowa takes on South Carolina on March 31 at 8:00 p.m. CT.

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Friday betting odds for 2023 NCAA Tournament Final Four

Here are the Friday betting lines for this weekend’s Final Four games.

The field of 68 teams has been whittled down to four as the 2023 NCAA Tournament nears its end. This year’s Final Four is a historic one as no team seeded higher than fourth made it to NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, for the culmination of this year’s basketball extravaganza โ€” a list that features the No. 4 UConn Huskies, No. 5 Miami Hurricanes, No. 5 San Diego State Aztecs and No. 9 Florida Atlantic Owls.

Look below at BetMGM’s betting odds on Friday for the 2023 NCAA Tournament Final Four this coming weekend along with the times of each game and which television channel to follow the action. All times are in EDT and all lines are as of 9:45 a.m. Friday.

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All of Kim Mulkey’s (sometimes outrageous) fashion statements during the 2023 NCAA tournament

Kim Mulkey has *unique* style.

The spotlight on Kim Mulkey isn’t always a good one.

The LSU women’s basketball coach โ€” who had the Tigers back in the Final Four for the first time since 2008 โ€”ย is one of the more controversial figures in college sports. In recent years, she’s made headlines for things like making dangerous comments about COVID-19 testing and for being noticeably absent with support for her former Baylor player Brittney Griner, who was unlawfully detained by Russia.

But regardless of what you think about Mulkey’s approach and viewpoints, there’s no denying she often makes some bold fashion statements on the sidelines โ€”ย even if those statements scream outrageous and are attention-grabbing for the wrong reasons. (Her shoes, however, are often incredible.)

So here’s a look at Mulkey’s in-game fashion statements from the 2023 women’s NCAA tournament.

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Cheapest women’s Final Four ticket much, much pricier than lowest-priced men’s ticket

Thanks in part to Iowa’s star power, the cheapest women’s Final Four ticket is pricier than the cheapest men’s Final Four ticket in 2023.

Right off the top, yes, there’s more seats in NRG Stadium as compared to the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

More than 50,000 seats inside NRG Stadium as compared to the American Airlines Center to be precise. Per Sara Tidwell ofย Sporting News, the comparison is 19,200 versus 72,220 in capacity.

American Airlines Center can reach 21,146 capacity with standing room only tickets, while NRG Stadium is expandable to 80,000 for special events.ย So, there’s a sizable gap in the amount of total tickets to be sold.

That being said, the cheapest semifinal ticket on secondary markets for the women’s Final Four has been much, much pricier than its men’s Final Four counterpart during these 2023 NCAA Tournaments.

As of Tuesday morning, the lowest men’s Final Four semifinals ticket price was $99, while the lowest women’s Final Four semifinals ticket price was $323.

Per TickPick, those numbers for the men’s Final Four semifinals have actually since dropped. Now, the cheapest men’s Final Four semifinal ticket will run you $57.

Comparatively, the cheapest all-in women’s Final Four semifinals tickets were $257 last night.

Again, to some degree, there’s a difference in demand based simply on capacity. But, this is still a profound statement on how customers are viewing the relative star power at each.

The draw of the Iowa Hawkeyes is obvious. There’s the Naismith Trophy winner in star point guard Caitlin Clark who is doing things that just haven’t been done very often in women’s basketball.

She’s joined by star big Monika Czinano and a talented supporting cast that has Iowa (30-6, 15-3 Big Ten) in its second all-time Final Four appearance. That alone is a compelling storyline.

Pit all of that up against undefeated and defending national champion South Carolina and you’ve got yourself both a ratings and ticket sales winner. The Hawkeyes’ Elite Eight win over Louisville just reeled in 2.49 million viewers and this Final Four date is likely to race past that number with ease.

Both LSU (32-2, 15-1 SEC) and Virginia Tech (31-4, 14-4 ACC) bring compelling stories as well. LSU makes its first appearance in the Final Four in 15 years, while the Hokies are enjoying their first-ever Final Four trip.

The men’s Final Four has plenty of fresh faces, too. It boasts three first-time Final Four participants in Florida Atlantic, San Diego State and Miami. That trio alongside four-time NCAA Tournament champion Connecticut sounds like a pretty exciting Final Four.

Fans seem to be longing for the blue bloods, though. Or, at the very least, they aren’t sold that it boasts the same type of elite star power of Final Fours’ past.

Meanwhile, collectively, the stars are out in the women’s Final Four. The National Player of the Year is here in Clark along with fellow Naismith Trophy finalists Aliyah Boston of South Carolina and Elizabeth Kitley of Virginia Tech.

It’s certainly not apples to apples here, but the biggest takeaway is there’s some serious consumer and viewer interest in this women’s Final Four.

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Contact/Follow usย @HawkeyesWireย on Twitter, and like our page onย Facebookย to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Josh on Twitter: @JoshOnREF

What to do in and around Dallas for the Women’s Final Four

Brands like Playa Society and TOGETHXR have come together to celebrate the women’s side of the game.

The Women’s Final Four and National Championship games take place in Dallas, Texas at the American Airlines Center. The D1 Final Four takes place on March 31st, D2 and D3 National Championships take place on April 1st, and the D1 National Championship game takes place on April 2nd.

The NCAA and their corporate sponsors put together a list of events and activations from March 30th – April 2nd. These events are free to the public and take place throughout the city of Dallas.

There will also be pop-ups and other brands that champion women’s sports holding events in honor of the Final Four and Championship games. Brands like Playa Society and TOGETHXR have come together to celebrate the women’s side of the game. They are holding “an all-day womenโ€™s basketball celebration with snacks, drinks, and giveaways.”