Iowa women’s basketball notes: Kate Martin’s leadership role

IOWA CITY — What makes a leader?

“I think the best thing a leader can do is to bring others along with them,” Iowa junior Kate Martin said at women’s basketball media day Thursday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. “I try to bring others along with me.

“I think I’m a good leader, and I have great followers.”

Caitlin Clark and Monika Czinano will get the attention and the accolades, but consensus among the Hawkeyes is that Martin is the leader, the glue.

“I could talk about Kate all day,” Clark said. “How steady she is, she’s one of those people you can lean on. She does a lot of dirty work, a lot of stuff that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet or in a news article.”

Martin is one of three captains for the 2021-22 Hawkeyes, along with Czinano and McKenna Warnock.

“Kate is the glue,” Coach Lisa Bluder said. “She’s one of the best leaders I’ve ever seen.

“Her 3-point shooting is strong, her maturity, her leadership. This is the healthiest she’s been. She’s stronger, quicker.”

What makes a leader?

“You know, people are going to remember the accolades,” Martin said. “But what they’re really going to remember is how you made them feel.”

Kylie Feuerbach’s return to Hilton

If you count Kylie Feuerbach, the Hawkeyes have six players on their roster that started last season.

A sophomore guard from Sycamore, Ill., Feuerbach started 24 games for Iowa State, then entered the transfer portal, then selected Iowa.

“I love it,” she said. “No complaints.”

Feuerbach was asked to compare the philosophies of the two programs.

“Iowa State runs a lot of plays,” she said. “Iowa, it’s more of a transition game.”

Feuerbach returns to Hilton Coliseum on Dec. 8 for the Cy-Hawk game. Iowa has won five of them in a row.

“I never got to play in front of a crowd there,” she said. “It will be interesting to see what it’s like.”

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com