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Women's Final Four: Caitlin Clark, Iowa rally past UConn, will play for national title
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- Women's Final Four: Caitlin Clark, Iowa rally past UConn, will play for national title
CLEVELAND — The swings in momentum went back and forth Friday night between Iowa and Connecticut in the second national semifinal in the Women's Final Four. The final swing, though, went the way of the Hawkeyes.
Iowa drew an offensive foul and then grabbed a critical jump ball on a missed Caitlin Clark free throw in the final 9.6 seconds to hold off the Huskies 71-69 inside Rocket Mortgage Field House.
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The Hawkeyes (34-4) advanced to Sunday's 3 p.m. national championship game against undefeated South Carolina (37-0), their second consecutive title game appearance. The Gamecocks defeated North Carolina State 78-59 in the first semifinal Friday.
In the span of about 10 seconds, it looked like Iowa was both destined to advance and to go home. The Hawkeyes, who led 70-64 with 2:14 remaining in the game on Kate Martin's basket, were only up 70-69 with 9.6 seconds left when UConn's KK Arnold came up with the Huskies' 15th steal of the game.
After a timeout, UConn set up a play to try to win the game. However, Aaliyah Edwards was whistled for an offensive foul when she appeared to stick out her left elbow on a screen against Iowa's Gabbie Marshall.
Iowa forward Hannah Stuelke (45) dribbles the ball against Connecticut in Friday's national semifinal game.
Edwards said after the game the official didn't explain the call to her in the moment. Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma took a second to choose his words when asked about the call.
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"I mean, that's probably an illegal screen call that you could make on every single possession," said Auriemma, whose team was called for 18 fouls to nine on Iowa. "I just know there were three or four of them called on us and I don't think there were any called on them. So I guess we just gotta get better in not setting illegal screens."
The Huskies eventually fouled Clark with 3.1 seconds in an attempt to get the ball back with, at worst, a chance to tie with a 3-point basket. The problem for them was that they couldn't get control of the ball.
Clark made the first free throw for a 71-69 lead, but missed the second one. However, Martin outmuscled UConn's players to gain possession of the ball on a jump ball with 1.7 seconds remaining, essentially sealing the game.
"I don't think I was ever worried about the game," Iowa sophomore center Hannah Stuelke said. "You know, we had the chance to get a defensive stop, and that's what we did. Gabbie's great in those situations. She always comes up with big plays, whether it's a block or whatever.
Apr 5, 2024; Cleveland, OH, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes guard Caitlin Clark (22) dribbles the ball past Connecticut Huskies guard Nika Muhl (10) in the semifinals of the Final Four of the womens 2024 NCAA Tournament at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Clark finished with 21 points for Iowa, which wasn't the team high. That belonged to Stuelke, who scored 23 points.
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It was Stuelke who had 15 second-half points to help the Hawkeyes rally from a slow first half and eventually build a nine-point lead with 5:42 remaining. Martin added 11 points.
"I think Hannah's tremendous," Clark said of her sophomore teammate. "I think it's just the confidence and belief. I think tonight she played with an energy about herself. She really could go in there and dominate. … I think this the Hannah we all know, just having that confidence within herself because we all have it in her. Just super happy for her."
UConn star Paige Bueckers scored 17 points. That was tied with Edwards for the best among the Huskies, who finish 33-6.
Connecticut, which was in its record 23rd Final Four, also received 14 points from Arnold.
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"Nobody thought we would be here," Bueckers said. "All people posted about us was the worst ranking in 20 years, the worst start in 20 years, the worst seeding in the tournament in 20 years. And here we are at the Final Four. It's not the ending we wanted, but just to look back and — it's hard right now, of course, because all you're thinking about is the loss, but this is relationships and memories we'll have for the rest of our life. And I know we're proud of being here, just the standard at UConn is national championships, so it's always disappointing, but I know we'll reflect after this and just get better from here."
Auriemma joked the day before the semifinal about the fact both teams wanted to play fast, and he wasn't sure he'd have enough timeouts to give his players the rest they needed. The first half was anything but the up-and-down the floor shootout even the Huskies legend may have anticipated.
Apr 5, 2024; Cleveland, OH, USA; Connecticut Huskies guard Paige Bueckers (5) dribbles the ball against the Iowa Hawkeyes in the semifinals of the Final Four of the womens 2024 NCAA Tournament at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
No two players may have best showcased that than the two stars who were central to the matchup. Clark had six points at halftime on just 3-of-10 shooting, including 0-of-5 from behind the 3-point line.
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"I think honestly, like, my shots felt really good in the first half," Clark said. "Like, I thought a few of them were in. And sometimes that's what happens as a shooter. You get a little cold."
Bueckers had seven points, making 1 of 3 3-pointers and shooting just 3 of 9 overall. That one 3-pointer did give the Huskies their biggest lead of the night at 28-16 with 5:11 left in the second, a lead that was down to 32-26 by halftime.
Iowa was also hampered by 12 first-half turnovers, 11 of which were steals by the Huskies. Connecticut turned those into 13 points.
Auriemma's words sounded much more prescient coming out of the intermission. Iowa opened on a 10-2 run to tie the score 36-36 on Martin's layup with 7:31 left in the third quarter.
Apr 5, 2024; Cleveland, OH, USA; Connecticut Huskies guard KK Arnold (2) dribbles the ball against Iowa Hawkeyes guard Sydney Affolter (3) in the semifinals of the Final Four of the womens 2024 NCAA Tournament at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Bueckers, though, quickly answered with a 3-pointer to give UConn the lead right back at 39-36. However, the Huskies couldn't keep the Hawkeyes from eventually catching them in the quarter.
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That moment came with 3:14 left in the third when Stuelke's basket tied the score 45-45. She then gave the Hawkeyes their first lead since the first possession of the game at 47-45 with two free throws with 2:34 remaining in the third.
Iowa also had leads of 49-47 and 51-49 in the last stretch of the third. Connecticut answered each time, including a game-tying basket by Edwards with 4 seconds left in the quarter to send the game to the fourth tied at 51-51.
Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ .
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Hannah Stuelke, Kate Martin help Iowa beat UConn in semifinal
