Caitlin Clark explains how close win in Round of 32 was more fulfilling than a blowout victory

The Iowa women’s hoops team survived their second round NCAA Tournament game against West Virginia, with Caitlin Clark calling the win one of the hardest of her career.

The Hawkeyes were at home in what was Clark’s final game as a college hooper in front of her home fans, but the Mountaineers battled for all 40 minutes, tying the game in the fourth quarter before Iowa was ultimately able to put them away and advance to the Sweet 16.

“This is definitely up there with the best of them, mentally and emotionally and physically, grinding this out and getting the win,” Clark said after the hard-fought victory.

She went on to explain that these second round games are among the toughest in the tournament because of the opponent and the pressure.

“To be honest, looking back on our journey last year, to me, this is one of the hardest rounds in the NCAA Tournament. Everyone is really good. You’re expected to win. You’re on your home court. You have all the pressure in the world. They have absolutely nothing to lose to come in here and upset us. That happened my sophomore year. Last year, we were in a game that was even closer than this one.”

Amid another nail-biter in the second round, Clark says the team didn’t panic and wasn’t totally out of synch en route to getting the win, even if it was a poor offensive day.

“Our group wasn’t flustered by any means when they tied it up. Yes, we had so many opportunities tonight where we got to a ten-point lead, a seven-point lead, and we couldn’t figure out a way to extend it. Honestly, we just didn’t shoot the ball very well. We didn’t make shots we normally make. We didn’t shoot it too great from the three-point line.”

But what Iowa did was lock in on the defensive end. The Hawkeyes gobbled up loose balls and played some of their best defense of the season when the offense wasn’t its most effective.

“I think that should give us a lot of motivation. West Virginia is a really good basketball team. We found a way to win. We changed up our defenses. We got big rebounds when it mattered. We made big free throws.”

To Caitlin Clark, bad shooting nights happen, but Iowa proof they can win with defense is the bigger takeaway from the West Virginia game.

“I think that’s the biggest thing. There’s a lot of positive to take away from this when maybe we didn’t even play our best basketball or look as pretty. That’s more fulfilling of a win for us than going out there and winning by 30 points.”