October 7th 2023.
The University of Iowa's women's basketball team has been soaring to new heights of success and popularity. On October 15, the Hawkeyes will play an exhibition game at the Kinnick Stadium against DePaul, and the event has already sold over 47,000 tickets. With a capacity of 70,000, the team is well on its way to filling the stadium.
The Hawkeyes have had a great run in recent years. Last season, they finished with a 31-7 record and had a chance to compete for the national championship. This is a far cry from their record set in 2002, and it's clear the team has only been growing in support.
Head coach Lisa Bluder was inspired by the success of her program to continue to build. During Iowa's media day, she told CBS Sports, "I've stolen this quote from Billie Jean King many times. And, in fact, I'm reading the book right now, 'Pressure Is a Privilege.' So I think we have to remember that we're in this situation of facing pressure because we've done well. Let's enjoy that. Let's rejoice about that."
Bluder attributed the team's success to the star guard Caitlin Clark, a 6-foot player who scored 191 points in the NCAA Tournament last season. She praised Clark's drive to constantly get better, saying, "You know, she's never satisfied, but that's the beauty of basketball. You never play a perfect game. There's always things that you can work on. I think she understands that. She's constantly working to get better. It's not like she's sitting back and enjoying this time of her being the National Player of the Year. She wants to get it again. She's wired that way, where she just always wants to do better."
The team has already sold out their season tickets for 2021-2022, and the interest is being largely driven by seniors Clark, fifth-year guard Gabbie Marshall, and sixth-year guard Kate Martin. Their success on the court has been inspiring to watch, and with the team's popularity only increasing, it's sure to be an exciting season for the Hawkeyes.
[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]
