Every team wants the chance to take its shot at the top team, the team no one else can figure out — the team that is supposed to be dominant.
The Iowa Hawkeyes earned that chance against the South Carolina Gamecocks in the Final Four.
The Hawkeyes didn’t flinch.
Iowa jumped to a quick lead, showed it wanted to give everything and them some to South Carolina and proved it had every right to play for a national title. From the first quarter onward, Iowa weathered every run the Gamecocks thew at them and responded with one of their own. The Hawkeyes took down the team no one was supposed to beat.
Iowa’s 77-73 win was a heavyweight boxing fight with two powerhouses trading blows back and forth. It exceeded the lofty expectations America had set for it.
The effort by the Hawkeyes was incredible in every sense of the word from all sorts of contributors. Here are the biggest takeaways from the Hawkeyes’ historic Final Four win.