Iowa women’s basketball made waves these past two years with their star player Caitlin Clark. However, in April, Clark was drafted into the WNBA. So the question is, what’s next for Iowa women’s Basketball?
At the beginning of May, Iowa announced that head coach Lisa Bluder was retiring after her 24 years in Iowa City. Many fans anticipated the change following her leading her team to the NCAA Championship two years in a row. Coach Bluder was the fire of the Iowa Women’s Basketball Team, but she now hands the torch off to long-time assistant Jan Jensen. Not many people know the program as well as Jensen, having landed multiple high-ranking recruits, including Caitlin Clark, while also being a top asset to the rise of Megan Gustafson and Monika Czinano.
After a long and eventful offseason, Iowa acquired Villanova transfer Lucy Olsen, the nation’s third-best scorer behind Caitlin Clark and JuJu Watkins at USC. She gave fans a glimpse into this new Iowa team’s focus for the season. In an interview with CBS Sports Olsen said, “I don’t really think [that it will be] added pressure just because it’s a new team, new coach, and five new freshmen coming in. We all got to figure it out it’s not just ‘oh I’m taking Caitlin Clark’s’ spot. It’s a whole new era.”
This season will be another sold-out season in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Despite the departure of three key players (Gabbie Marshall, Kate Martin, and Caitlin Clark), the excitement is still just as prevalent for fans in Iowa City. Coach Jensen hopes that instead of feeling the pressure of a post-Clark existence, this new batch of Hawkeyes will embrace the fun of a major challenge ahead to prove people wrong.
Adding UCLA, USC, Washington, and Oregon to the Big Ten creates new and tougher competition for the Hawkeyes. But, they are excited to play against different teams than they are used to. Jensen wants the returning and new players to embrace the opportunities that will come with all the different circumstances. Everyone is aware that there will never be another Caitlin Clark and what she and her teammates accomplished was the stuff of legends. It is not the time to be sad about what was lost but rather be happy about what they learned from their two tournament runs.
Iowa is not ranked in the preseason AP poll, but don’t count them out yet. Iowa has surprised the country before and they can do it again. Iowa Women’s Basketball post-Caitlin Clark will never be the same, but if Hawkeye fans have the same enthusiastic energy that they have in years past, this season will be successful no matter what. So, make sure to tune in to Iowa’s season opener against Northern Illinois at 6:30 on Wednesday, November 6.
