We might have a game of the year contender in the first week of the 2022-23 women’s college basketball season.
Iowa women’s basketball announced on Monday that they would be participating in the Phil Knight Legacy College Basketball Tournament on Nov. 25. The Hawkeyes will open up their 2022-23 campaign against Pac-12 foe Oregon State. Oregon State finished with a respectable 17-14 record last season.
Not to completely gloss over Oregon State and the opening contest, but the bracket posted for the tournament should widen the eyes of any fan of college women’s hoops. On the other side of the bracket Connecticut faces Duke. The idea of a potential Connecticut-Iowa matchup should have every hoops fan salivating.
The complete bracket 👀⤵️ https://t.co/Qx069TNdww pic.twitter.com/k1wXJn6IAI
— Iowa Women's Basketball (@IowaWBB) July 25, 2022
Both Uconn and Iowa will surely enter the upcoming season in the top 10. While Iowa unfortunately fell in the second round of last year’s NCAA tournament, they certainly have the talent to go way further. Uconn did exactly what they always do, making the Final Four for the 13th consecutive year in a row. Both teams feature arguably the best hooper in the nation.
Paige Bueckers was probably Connecticut’s most hyped-up recruit since superstar Breanna Stewart. She proved that hype was warranted right away, becoming a leader early in her freshman year. Her offensive output declined a bit last year due to an injury, but she’s still clearly one of the nation’s elite.
Iowa’s Caitlin Clark was the nation’s leader in points per game and assists per game. It goes further than just the stat line, though. Clark’s long range shooting has made her one of the biggest stars in all of women’s basketball.
This right here is the matchup every fan, every person involved with women’s basketball should be hoping for. Clark and Bueckers are leading the way for the next generation of women’s basketball stars alongside South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston. They are leading a movement that is getting more and more people interested in women’s hoops.
The last time these two matched up against each other was in the Sweet 16 of the 2021 NCAA Tournament. Uconn got the better of Iowa, winning 92-72, but both looked like potential superstars. Now after both have reached that elite status, a super matchup between two of the biggest stars in the sport would be monumental.
[listicle id=5296]
[listicle id=6373]
Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions.
Follow Jacob on Twitter: @Jacobkeppen
Let us know your thoughts, and comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.