Iowa vs. LSU showdown exceeded the hype. We dreamed, they delivered | USAEMALL.com

ALBANY, N.Y. — It’s felt like Iowa and LSU have been on a collision course for a full yr now, ever for the reason that groups clashed within the nationwide championship and one very well-known basketball participant taunted one other very well-known basketball participant on the finish.

So, on Selection Sunday, when the choice committee unveiled the ladies’s NCAA Tournament bracket, and we noticed that these two groups might meet once more — this time within the Elite Eight — all of us instantly circled it. Many of us crammed out our brackets in hopes that our picks might assist it come to fruition, regardless of how troublesome each groups’ paths could be to get right here.

And then we bought it. We bought the dream matchup with a Final Four berth on the road. A heavyweight struggle, a rematch, one other legacy-making second. Reporters debated whether or not it might break the mammoth girls’s basketball TV viewership report that the final assembly in Dallas had set. Those of us right here in Albany twiddled our thumbs and impatiently counted down the minutes to tipoff, hoping in opposition to all odds {that a} recreation with a lot hype might truly reside as much as it.

And then it did.

With a 94-87 victory fueled by 41 factors from Caitlin Clark, the Hawkeyes are again within the Final Four.

Iowa got here out swinging, led by the primary of 9 Clark 3s and a breakneck tempo of play. LSU needed to soak up the punches and set up its submit play by way of Angel Reese. Then the Tigers went on their run, and Iowa needed to reply.

“Basketball is usually a game of momentum swings, and you’ve got to make yours ride as long as you can and hang on during theirs,” Iowa coach Lisa Bluder mentioned.

She noticed one thing in Clark’s eyes as her Hawkeyes got here again out after halftime, recreation tied 45-45, one thing that informed her Clark could be launching photographs from wherever she needed to on the court docket. Bluder has seen that look. She is aware of that Clark’s vary isn’t confined wherever within the constructing. She watched Clark land one other punch — a deep 3, her third of the evening — to present Iowa the lead initially of the third quarter. The Hawkeyes would by no means relinquish it.

Clark saved taking pictures, and he or she saved hitting. By the time the ultimate buzzer sounded, she additionally had 12 assists and accounted for 67 of Iowa’s factors (71 p.c), tied the NCAA Tournament single-game report with 9 3-pointers, broke the NCAA Tournament report with 140 assists and have become the primary participant with three 40-point event video games. She ended up three rebounds shy of a triple-double in a recreation that everybody on each sidelines knew basically could be gained or misplaced by her.

She did all that in a recreation through which Reese performed by way of a bum ankle, practically posted a 20-20 double-double and gave it the whole lot she had till she ran out of fouls to present. They did all that in a recreation through which Flau’jae Johnson hit large photographs and dazzled defensively, practically single-handedly conserving the Tigers within the recreation in the course of the Hawkeyes’ third-quarter barrage of buckets, and Iowa captain Kate Martin scored 21 factors, every one coming at simply the fitting time.

Ultimately, the Hawkeyes avenged their championship loss. They reduce down each nets and doused their coach in confetti, and Clark ended her evening with a chunk of the online tucked into her baseball cap and a giant smile on her face.

It’s too quickly to know what the viewers ended up being for Monday’s masterpiece of a basketball recreation. It additionally doesn’t matter all that a lot as a result of the 2 groups met the second, and everybody who watched that recreation is aware of they witnessed athletic excellence. If 7 million individuals noticed it, that’s 7 million individuals who noticed a fantastic recreation. If 8 million individuals tuned in, meaning much more individuals selected a great way to spend their Monday night.

“No matter which way it went tonight, I know this was going to be a night for the ages,” Reese mentioned.

“It was an honor to be in that moment,” added LSU guard Hailey Van Lith.

Clark understands the magnitude of one thing like Monday evening, too. So lots of her video games have set so many viewership data. But when she’s on the court docket, she doesn’t really feel these additional eyeballs.

“There could have been nobody in the gym, and both teams would have competed the exact same way,” Clark mentioned. “You’re playing for a little more with the Final Four on the line, but to me I’m not thinking, ‘Oh my God, there’s 15 million people at home watching this game right now.’”

So, she saved specializing in what she wanted to do to beat LSU. Her teammates did, too. And that’s what they did, lastly, a yr after they couldn’t and didn’t.

That is what we’re drawn to as sports activities followers. That is what was so compelling about this matchup — effectively, past these brand 3s and no-look passes, which we additionally get pleasure from. We love stars who shine brightest on the most important stage, and we bought that in spades and in punches exchanged.

On Monday evening, we bought all that and extra. It’s a rarity on this life that what we truly get is so a lot better than what we needed within the first place. For that, I’m eternally grateful.

(Photo of Caitlin Clark: Scott Taetsch / NCAA Photos through Getty Images)