Wednesday, Caitlin Clark was named “Naismith National Player of the Year”, an award which recognizes the best university player of the season. It must be said that during her junior season with Iowa, she exploded the counters statistically with 27.3 points, 8.6 assists, 7.3 rebounds at 47.4% shooting including 39.2% at 3-pointers! Impressive figures that make her the only player to post averages of at least 20 points, 5 assists and 5 rebounds over the season.
“Winning this trophy is a great achievement” said Caitlin Clark. “It’s a great honor for our family and our program. None of this would be possible without this tremendous support. I want to thank Lisa Bluder (coach) and her staff for giving me the opportunity to play for the University of Iowa. It’s a place where I blossomed as soon as I set foot on campus”.
Collectively, the results follow, as Iowa qualified for the March Madness Final Four, after a historic performance by Caitlin Clark, author of a 40-point triple-double against Louisville. A meeting where she was directly involved in 70 of the 97 points scored by her team, either by scoring or by making the decisive pass!
The other three finalists for the trophy were Elizabeth Kitley (Virginia Tech), Maddy Siegrist (Villanova), and of course Aliyah Boston (South Carolina). The latter, considered the best university player, had achieved an incredible hat-trick last season by winning the NCAA title, the trophy for best player of the year, and the trophy for best defender of the year. This is to say the level of play of Caitlin Clark this season …
And as talent and chance often do things well, Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston will meet in the Final Four during a national semi-final which promises to be boiling on Friday. If South Carolina, defending champion, who has still not lost a single game this season (36-0) is a big favorite, Iowa will try to defy the odds.
A feat that could send Caitlin Clark and the Hawkeyes to the gates of a first national coronation for the program, men and women alike.
