West Virginia Coach Mark Kellogg addresses ‘send Caitlin Clark packing’ comment

IOWA CITY — West Virginia Coach Mark Kellogg went viral — and roused Iowa fans — with his comment last Sunday after the NCAA women’s basketball tournament pairings were released:

“I told them, (let’s) win one and let’s send Caitlin Clark packing,” Kellogg said at the Mountaineers’ watch party.

No. 8-seed West Virginia (24-7) faces No. 9-seed Princeton (25-4) in a first-round game at 4:30 p.m. Saturday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. No. 1-seed Iowa (29-4) and No. 16-seed Holy Cross (21-12) meet at 2 p.m. The winners play Monday.

Kellogg was asked Friday about his original comment.

“I'm not a (trash-talker),” he said. “I wasn’t out to get Caitlin Clark. It’s not Mark Kellogg versus Caitlin Clark.

“Our seed is honestly where it started. That wasn’t really the seed maybe that some people in the room were expecting, not even from me necessarily. So it turned into, ‘OK, well, let’s get past that. Now let’s talk about Princeton.’

“Then, of course, everybody in the room knows Caitlin Clark.”

Recommended Reading

Molly Davis: ‘I’m never going to rule myself out’ of playing in NCAA

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com