Ultimately, the LSU Tigers should be commended for capturing the program’s first national championship in a 102-85 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes. That part of the story can’t get lost in translation and forgotten.
After the Hawkeyes attempted to charge back in the third quarter, key shots from Alexis Morris, LaDazhia Williams and Angel Reese, LSU’s biggest stars, stymied it. Iowa cut down a 21-point deficit early in the third quarter to seven on several instances. But, those three made shots that put Iowa away for good.
That was the story in the first half, too. LSU built what proved an insurmountable 59-42 halftime edge.
As Iowa’s two biggest stars, superstar guard Caitlin Clark and big Monika Czinano, were limited by foul trouble in the first half. In their absence, LSU’s secondary players stole the show.
Jasmine Carson caught lightning in a bottle in the first half, shooting 7-of-7 from the field and 5-of-5 from 3-point range to register 21 points off the bench. That proved the difference.
So, none of that should be forgotten.
But, the national reaction shows that this game will not be talked about without a serious critique of the officiating as well.
It resulted in Czinano missing a large chunk of the first half and fouling out early in the fourth quarter. Clark sat to close the first half as well.
Then, there was the technical foul on Clark that had folks pulling out their hair. Here’s a look at the reaction to the officiating that become one of the big storylines.