The madness of March. South Carolina has clinched their spot back on top of women’s college basketball. The South Carolina Gamecocks completed an undefeated season on the afternoon of Sunday, April 7th with an 87-75 win over Iowa. Winning their third national title in program history, South Carolina becomes the first team to complete a perfect season since the 2016 UConn team.
Not only did the Gamecocks make history with the national title win, but so did their opponent: Caitlin Clark. Believe it or not, Caitlin Clark had set yet another record for NCAA basketball. She set a women’s championship game record for scoring in a single quarter with 18 points and in the process, surpassed former all-time leading scorer in NCAA Tournament history, Chamique Holdsclaw.
South Carolina’s freshman point guard, Tessa Johnson was also ready for the moment. She starred on the biggest stage, in the biggest moment of her young career. Tessa was the momentum-change in the third quarter for the Gamecocks as they began to push for the much-needed offensive boost. She scored a career-high 19 points in the championship game, shooting 7-for-11 from the field, and she didn’t miss a shot in the second or third quarter. She went 3-for-6 from 3-point range as there wasn’t a challenge Tessa wasn’t going to take on.
Dawn Staley, who coaches South Carolina’s women’s basketball team and is now a national champion, has become the fifth coach in Division I women’s college basketball history to win three national championships. Dawn had a lot of emotion in her post game national championship winning speech and a ton of respect for her opponent. She had applauded Iowa but especially Caitlin Clark in her speech for the impact she has made on women’s college basketball, and women’s sports as a whole.
Dawn had said, “I want to personally thank Caitlin Clark for lifting up our sport. She carried a heavy load for our sport, and it just is not going to stop here on the collegiate tour. But when she is the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft, she’s going to lift the league up as well. So, Caitlin Clark if you’re out there, you are one of the GOATs of our game. We appreciate you.” A day prior, coach Staley had said Clark should be in the GOAT conversation, a player has to have a ring. “I mean she’s really damn good regardless, but winning the championship would seal the deal.” Staley had said of Clark.
