Caitlin Clark saves one of her best games for just the right time

41 points
12 assists
7 rebounds
9 3-pointers (Ties NCAA tournament record)

Iowa advances to the final 4 for the 2nd straight year.

Bad statistic. UConn has more injured players than active players?

Juju Watkins has now set the freshman women's record for most points scored. If she stays four years, she should easily break Caitlin Clark's record. The question is will she or go to the WNBA early? Two years from now once Clark joins the WNBA it could be a lot more popular and attractive than it is now, maybe she wants to leave after three years.

After watching the Iowa/LSU game, it was certainly billed as Clark vs. Reese but if you want to buy low, Flau'jae Johnson. Assuming Reese goes pro, don't think LSU is going away next year.

But if you're watching now, you're probably watching the two best players in women's college basketball ... in 2025. Maybe the two best teams?

Courtesy CBS Sports Twitter (Showing the two stars together)

I've read on Twitter that the LSU team left the court when the National Anthem was played. I've seen it posted on other news sites as well. **** them. If they don't like this country I am sure I can get a gofundme drive to pay them to move to the country of their choice.

Is this really happening? Someone pinch me!

So I think ESPN is absoutely thrilled tonight. Iowa/UConn in a semifinal?

Weird stat:

- Each Elite 8 game was a #1 Seed vs a #3 Seed.

- Both Final Four games will be a #1 Seed vs a #3 Seed.

- With an Iowa/North Carolina St or South Carolina/Connecticut championship, we will have a #1 Seed vs a #3 Seed matchup.

so have to ask. If UConn were to win it all, does Geno hang it up?

(04-01-2024 10:48 PM)stever20 Wrote:  so have to ask. If UConn were to win it all, does Geno hang it up?

Looking at it, trying to see why UConn was only a 3 seed with a 33-5 record.

They played 5 of the sweet 16 teams prior to the tourney. They lost to all 5 by double digits, South Carolina, North Carolina St., Texas, UCLA and Notre Dame.

best recruiting rankings ever in any sport?

(04-01-2024 09:15 PM)schmolik Wrote:  Juju Watkins has now set the freshman women's record for most points scored. If she stays four years, she should easily break Caitlin Clark's record. The question is will she or go to the WNBA early? Two years from now once Clark joins the WNBA it could be a lot more popular and attractive than it is now, maybe she wants to leave after three years.

After watching the Iowa/LSU game, it was certainly billed as Clark vs. Reese but if you want to buy low, Flau'jae Johnson. Assuming Reese goes pro, don't think LSU is going away next year.

But if you're watching now, you're probably watching the two best players in women's college basketball ... in 2025. Maybe the two best teams?

I found this list out there for 2024.
Women's basketball recruiting class rankings:

1. South Carolina - 3 five-stars
2. USC - 3 five-stars, 3 four-stars
3. UCLA - 3 five-stars
4. Duke - 2 five-stars, 1 four-star
5. Texas - 2 five-stars (both top-10 overall), 1 four-star
6. UConn - 2 five-stars
7. Michigan - 2 five-stars
8. Iowa - 4 four-stars
9. Maryland - 3 four-stars
10. Stanford - 3 four-stars

South Carolina will be loaded; USC has the top player in California coming to their campus to play alongside Watkins and with the three five-star additions UCLA will have six McDonald's All-American's on their roster, including the top two players from the 2022 class. The 2025 season should be entertaining.

(04-01-2024 11:24 PM)bullet Wrote:  

(04-01-2024 10:48 PM)stever20 Wrote:  so have to ask. If UConn were to win it all, does Geno hang it up?

Looking at it, trying to see why UConn was only a 3 seed with a 33-5 record.

They played 5 of the sweet 16 teams prior to the tourney. They lost to all 5 by double digits, South Carolina, North Carolina St., Texas, UCLA and Notre Dame.

You just answered your own question why UConn was only a 3 seed. The Big East made UConn look good lately and UConn played a 14, 6, and 7 before playing USC. Nothing before USC this season made any UConn fan have any faith that they were going to beat USC. Ohio State sent UConn packing last year and it wasn't even close. If Duke didn't beat them, does Connecticut even get to play USC?

Juju was great all season but she was still a freshman this tournament and this was by far the biggest game USC's head coach Lindsay Gottlieb has ever coached before. In a big game, perhaps the edge went to Paige Bueckers having played in two Final Fours before she got injured and Geno Auriemma winning 11 national championships. Iowa won't be intimidated the same way. They don't have a championship but they've "been there" before. UConn can't miss all those fourth quarter free throws and win.

I would've partied more but I was dead tired.

Higher seeds go 2-2 in R8 to make it 51-9 overall. Both FF matches are 1 vs. 3.

I watched the bulk of the Iowa vs. LSU game and about one-third of the UConn vs. USC contest. Main takeaway (other than how strong Clark is): I continue to be impressed with how the women's game is improving so quickly. Some of these young women are extremely agile and fluid. It seems only, say, 10 years ago, when each team offered no more than two solid players. Now, many of them have starting fives that are all quite good.

I look forward to Friday's two semi-finals games.

Iowa/Colorado drew 6.9 million viewers.

Can't wait to see the number for last night. And really looking forward to this weekend- if it's South Carolina/Iowa in the final- might set all sorts of records. Really think it might outdraw the men this year.

Has there ever been another season in which two different schools had both their men's and women's teams in the Final Four?

(04-02-2024 09:34 AM)ken d Wrote:  Has there ever been another season in which two different schools had both their men's and women's teams in the Final Four?

just googled it and the answer is no.

Disappointed that LSU could not beat Iowa last night, but Iowa was just the better team.

Should be a great Final 4. Happy to see Geno back in the F4. I know they were runners-up just two years ago, but for some reason it feels like they've been off the map for several years. Weird.

Maybe because they won so many national titles that if they don't win it all, it feels like the season didn't happen, LOL.