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Iowa women’s basketball’s road to the Final Four: A look at the 2023-24 season so far
From the Crossover at Kinnick to Cleveland
Here we go ... again. The Iowa women’s basketball team is back in the Final Four for the second year in a row, and what ride it’s been ... again.
The Hawkeyes opened the 2023-24 season with the “Crossover at Kinnick,” an exhibition at Kinnick Stadium that drew 55,646 fans.
What has followed is another 30-win season (33-4 to be exact,) another runner-up finish in the regular-season Big Ten race, another Big Ten tournament title and, now, another Final Four appearance.
Caitlin Clark, of course, has been the epicenter of this fantastic two-year run, setting NCAA scoring records and winning a second straight National Player of the Year honor.
Here is a quick look at the 2023-24 season:
Iowa 94, DePaul 72 (exhibition, Oct. 15) — Clark kicked things off with a triple-double, scoring 34 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and dishing out 10 assists in the “Crossover at Kinnick.” Molly Davis added 13 points.
Iowa 122, Clarke 49 (exhibition, Oct. 22) — Hannah Stuelke made a statement in her first start of the season inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena, going 11-15 from the field to finish with 27 points and 10 rebounds. Clark added 24 points.
Iowa 102, Farleigh Dickinson 46 (Nov. 6) — Clark led the Hawkeyes, finishing with a double-double scoring a team-high 28 points with 10 assists and seven rebounds in only 24 minutes. Stuelke added 22 points and Sharon Goodman scored 19 in her first collegiate start.
Iowa 94, Northern Iowa 53 (Nov. 12) — In the Hawkeyes’ first road game of the year, Clark registered a game-high 24 points to surpass Megan Gustafson (2015-19) as the program’s all-time scoring leader with 2,813 career points. Gabbie Marshall scored her first points of the season, bucketing a season-high 17.
Kansas State 65, Iowa 58 (Nov. 16) — A tough loss and Iowa’s first of the season. Clark finished with a team-high 24 points and six rebounds. Davis ended with 10 points for the Hawkeyes.
Iowa 113, Drake 90 (Nov. 19) — Kate Martin registered a career-high 25 points and Clark scored 35 points and tallied a career-high seven steals to lead the team.
Iowa 98, Purdue Fort Wayne 59 (Nov. 24) — In the quarterfinals of the Gulf Coast Showcase, Clark led Iowa with 29 points. Goodman followed with 16 and Stuelke added 13 points and eight rebounds.
Iowa 100, Florida Gulf Coast 62 (Nov. 25) — The Hawkeyes rolled through their semifinal matchup with Clark leading the way with 21 points, six assists and six rebounds. Taylor McCabe recorded a career-high 18 points.
Iowa 77, Kansas State 70 (Nov. 26) — In another matchup against Kansas State, the Hawkeyes came out with a win in the Gulf Coast Showcase championship. Clark had a game-high 32 points. Martin registered a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Iowa 99, Bowling Green 65 (Dec. 2) — Five Hawkeyes recorded double-digit points, led by Clark with a game-high 24. Sydney Affolter went 7-for-7 from the field.
Iowa 67, Iowa State 58 (Dec. 6) — Inside a sold-out Hilton Coliseum, the Hawkeyes gutted out a win in what is always a highly competitive in-state rivalry. Clark registered a game-high 35 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Clark crossed the 3,000 career point mark.
Iowa 87, Wisconsin 65 (Dec. 10) — The Hawkeyes opened Big Ten play inside a sold-out Kohl Center. Clark nearly had a double-double with 28 points and nine rebounds. Stuelke scored a Big Ten career-high with 21 points off the bench.
Iowa 104, Cleveland State 75 (Dec. 16) — At a sold-out Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Clark delivered a game-high 38 points, sinking nine 3-pointers. Stuelke added a double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds.
Iowa 98, Loyola Chicago 69 (Dec. 21) — In the Hawkeyes’ last non-conference regular-season game, Clark registered a triple-double with 35 points, 17 rebounds and 10 assists, marking her second of the season and 13th of her career.
Iowa 94, Minnesota 71 (Dec. 30) — In the Big Ten home opener, Clark finished with 35 points, five rebounds, and 10 assists. Clark recorded her 904th career assist to become Iowa’s all-time assist leader and the Big Ten’s all-time assist leader. Stuelke added 19 points on 9-for-10 shooting.
Iowa 76, Michigan State 73 (Jan. 2) — The Hawkeyes opened the new year with a highly-contested matchup capped by a Clark game-winning buzzer-beater. Clark had a game-high 40 points, marking her fourth straight game with 35 or more. Stuelke added 15 points and eight rebounds.
Iowa 103, Rutgers 69 (Jan. 5) — In the first sellout since 2006 for Rutgers women’s basketball, Clark recorded her third triple-double of the season with 29 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
Iowa 96, Purdue 71 (Jan. 10) — Clark recorded back-to-back triple doubles with 26 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists to mark four on the season and 15 for her career. Martin added 14 points.
Iowa 84, Indiana 57 (Jan. 13) — In a highly-anticipated matchup, the Hawkeyes took full control in the second half in front of a loud crowd at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Clark registered a game-high 30 points with 11 assists and five rebounds. Davis eclipsed her career-best in points in a Hawkeye uniform with 18.
Iowa 96, Wisconsin 50 (Jan. 16) — Clark recorded a team-high 32 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Martin registered 16 points and five rebounds. Clark became the NCAA’s fourth all-time leading scorer, surpassing Baylor’s Brittany Greiner.
Ohio State 100, Iowa 92 (OT) (Jan. 21) — The No. 2-ranked Hawkeyes suffered their first conference loss of the year. Clark scored 45 points, one off her career high. Davis added 14 points.
Iowa 92, Nebraska 73 (Jan. 27) — In a bounce-back game, Clark recorded a double-double with 38 points and 10 rebounds. Martin and Affolter added double-digit scoring with 16 and 12 points.
Iowa 110, Northwestern 74 (Jan. 31) — At yet another sold-out road game, Clark had a game-high 35 points, 10 assists and six rebounds, becoming the Big Ten’s all-time leading scorer and moved up to second all-time on the NCAA list.
Iowa 93, Maryland 85 (Feb. 3) — Clark recorded a double-double, finishing with 38 points and 12 assists. Davis went 7-of-11 from the field, recording 17 points, and Martin recorded the fifth double-double of her career.
Iowa 111, Penn State 93 (Feb. 8) — Stuelke broke the Carver-Hawkeye Arena record with a career-high 47 points on 17-for-20 shooting. Clark added 27 points and tied the Carver-Hawkeye Arena record for assists, with 15.
Nebraska 82, Iowa 79 (Feb. 11) — The Hawkeyes suffered their second conference loss in front of a sold-out crowd in Lincoln. Clark led all scorers with 31 points, putting her eight points away from breaking the NCAA all-time scoring record. The senior also registered 10 assists to become the sixth women’s college basketball player to record 1,000 dimes in a career.
Iowa 106, Michigan 89 (Feb. 16) — A night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena that will be remembered. Clark broke the NCAA all-time scoring record (passing Kelsey Plum) and the Iowa program single-game scoring record with 49 points. Clark also tallied 13 assists and five rebounds. Clark stood at a career 3,569 points following the game.
Indiana 86, Iowa 69 (Feb. 22) — The No. 14-ranked Hoosiers, in front of a sold-out home crowd, handed the Hawkeyes their lone double-digit loss of the season. Clark finished with a double-double of 24 points and 10 rebounds. Martin added 19 points.
Iowa 101, Illinois 85 (Feb. 25) — Clark recorded her 16th career triple-double, finishing with 24 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists. Stuelke nearly had a double-double, adding 20 points and nine rebounds.
Iowa 108, Minnesota 60 (Feb. 28) — Clark passed Lynette Woodard as the all-time major women’s college basketball scoring leader while recording her sixth triple-double of the season and 17th of her career with 33 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds.
Iowa 93, Ohio State 83 (March 3) — A memorable senior day as the No. 6 Hawkeyes battled it out against the No. 2 Buckeyes. Clark recorded 35 points to pass LSU’s Pete Maravich as the all-time leading scorer in NCAA Division I college basketball history with 3,685 career points. The Hawkeyes finished the regular season with a 26-4 (15-3 in conference) record.
Iowa 95, Penn State 62 (March 8) — The Hawkeyes rolled through their quarterfinal matchup in the Big Ten tournament. Five Hawkeyes scored in double figures, highlighted by Clark with a game-high 24 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. Clark surpassed Stephen Curry for the most 3-point field goals made in a single season with 163.
Iowa 95, Michigan 68 (March 9) — A fourth straight season of advancing to the tournament championship for the Hawkeyes. Clark registered game highs in points (28) and assists (15). Affolter added 12 points, seven rebounds and eight assists in her fifth career start and second straight following a Davis injury.
Iowa 94, Nebraska 89 (OT) (March 10) — After a hard-fought second-half comeback to force overtime, the Hawkeyes completed the three-peat of Big Ten tournament titles. Clark had a game-high 34 points to go along with 12 assists while Stuekle added 25 points. Affolter tallied her second career double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds and was named to the all-tournament team along with Clark, who was named MVP.
Iowa 91, Holy Cross 65 (March 23) — After almost two weeks off, the Hawkeyes took care of business in their NCAA tournament first-round game in front of a sold-out Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Clark led the way with 27 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.
Iowa 64, West Virginia 54 (March 25) — With a Sweet 16 berth on the line in the last game in Carver for the season, the Mountaineers did not make it easy on the Hawkeyes. Clark led Iowa with 32 points while Affolter added 13 points.
Iowa 89, Colorado 68 (March 30) — In a rematch of last year’s Sweet 16 matchup, Clark recorded her 66th career double-double with 29 points and 15 assists.
Iowa 94, LSU 87 (April 1) — In the most-watched women’s basketball game of all-time, the Hawkeyes defeated the Tigers to advance to their second straight Final Four and third in program history. Clark finished with 41 points, 12 assists and seven rebound.s] Martin contributed 21 points and Affolter added another 16. Clark also broke the NCAA women’s basketball 3-point records for a career (540) and NCAA tournament career (70).
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