Caitlin Clark drops 41 points to eliminate LSU and heads to Final Four: ‘Job’s not finished’

Iowa and LSU produced one of the most-talked about matchups in NCAA Tournament history, as the reigning champs were preparing to face against the lethal Caitlin Clark. In the end, the Hawkeyes star led her team to victory after posting 41 points, 12 assists, 7 rebounds and 2 steals, hitting 9 three-pointers against the Tigers.  

After their victory, the Iowa guard admitted that beating their opponents was everything but easy, and now she has her eyes on much more than just the Final Four appearance. She noted that her team only wants to “win two more” to secure themselves a championship.

“They killed us on the glass, but we were just resilient,” Clark said after last night’s performance. “We never hung our head when things didn’t go our way and that can get you a long way. I’m just proud of this group to go back to the Final Four. You enjoy this and then you get to Cleveland and you start prepping for your next game. We want to win two more, and I think we have the power to do that.”

Caitlin Clark is confident that her team can win the national title.

A little bit of celebration and then back to work. pic.twitter.com/6FbSeV1It8

— Kyle Huesmann (@HuesmannKyle) April 2, 2024

Caitlin says that working hard in silence has paid off for her, as she wants to compete for glory before her college days are over. “I think just having a little silence for myself was the biggest thing,” she said. “You’re a competitor, you work so hard for 40 minutes — just to soak it in, enjoy it, take a couple of deep breaths, because these moments go fast. My career is almost over.”

However, her career is everything but over, as experts guarantee she will be the No.1 pick in the upcoming WNBA Draft. In a recent report, ESPN’s Michael Voepel assured she’ll be at the top of the picks this summer, but doubts if the Hawkeyes guard will keep up her incredible shooting accuracy in the big leagues.

“Will she score as much in the WNBA as she is now?” the reporter noted. “No one has averaged 30 points for a WNBA season — the highest-ever average is Diana Taurasi’s 25.29 points per game in 2006 with the Phoenix Mercury — so Clark’s current 32.2 PPG is likely not sustainable in the WNBA.”

Even if her shooting efficiency comes down, the ESPN journalist believes her assist rate could continue to rise. “However, her 8.7 assists average conceivably could carry over. That would put Clark in very rare company: Only Courtney Vandersloot (six times) and Ticha Penicheiro (once) have averaged at least 8 assists for a WNBA season,” Voepel said.

Before the match, Angel Reese revealed that she doesn’t hate Clark but only sees her as her greatest opponent

There’s been a lot of talk heading into this Elite Eight clash, suggesting drama between both sides. However, before the match started, both Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark has their chance to set the record straight and revealed that trash talk is part of the game but neither holds any grudge or animosity towards each other.

“Me and Caitlin Clark don’t hate each other. I want everybody to understand that. It’s just a super competitive game,” the Tigers star said on Sunday. “Once I get between those lines, there’s no friends. I have plenty of friends on the court that I talk to outside of the game, but like when I get between those lines, we’re not friends. We’re not buddies.”

Nevertheless, Reese explained why she talks so much before a game. “I’m going to talk trash to you. I’m going to do whatever it takes to get in your head the whole entire game, but after the game we can kick it,” she revealed.

Clark agreed completely with her rival. “Me and Angel have always been great competitors. Obviously she played in the Big Ten for a while to begin her career, and that’s what makes women’s basketball so fun is you have great competition, and that’s what we’ve had all year long. I think Angel would say the same,” the Iowa star shared.