BY ALEX RASKIN
It’s rare that an Elite 8 matchup can get more attention than an NCAA Tournament final, but that could be the case this year, as Iowa and Louisiana State meet in Albany on Monday for a rematch of the 2023 championship.
A year ago, LSU’s 102-85 victory over Iowa in the title game drew nearly 10 million viewers, making it the most-watched women’s basketball game in history.
All the top players returned this time: LSU coach Kim Mulkey and her star, ‘Bayou Barbie’ Angel Reese, as well as Iowa coach Lisa Bluder and Caitlin Clark, the reigning NCAA Player of the Year.
And the little roster change that there was only seemed to enhance this budding rivalry.
Bluder successfully replaced Monika Czinano’s scoring with power forward Hannah Stuelke, while guiding Gabbie Marshall and Kate Martin into larger roles in 2023-24.
Meanwhile, Mulkey was forced to replace Jasmine Carson, LaDazhia Williams and Alexis Morris, who combined for 65 points in last year’s finals when Morris stepped up to “hold” Clark to 30 points on defense.
This season, Mulkey relied heavily on the perimeter defense of sophomore Flau’jae Johnson, as well as two transfers: former DePaul star Aneesah Morrow and former Louisville guard Hailey Van Lith.
Caitlin Clark is seen defended by then-Louisville guard Hailey Van Lith in 2023.
It’s a rematch of last year’s title game in which Reese’s Tigers beat Clark’s Hawkeyes.
And Monday wasn’t the first time Van Lith faced Clark in the Elite 8. A year earlier, with her Cardinals facing Clark’s Hawkeyes in Seattle, Van Lith was outscored 41-27 for Player of the Year as Iowa advanced to its first Final Four since 1993.
Along the way, Clark appeared to taunt Van Lith with wrestler John Cena’s ‘You Can’t See Me’ hand gesture after burying his sixth triple of the night.
Van Lith has since claimed that the gesture was actually directed at Iowa’s strength coach and not her, but there was certainly some degree of trash talk between her and Clark. Another clip toward the end of Iowa’s victory showed Clark telling Van Lith “you’re down by 15 points, shut up.”
Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese will renew their rivalry in the Elite Eight on Monday night
Clark would get a taste of his own medicine a week later.
After defeating defending champion South Carolina in the Final Four, Clark was on the receiving end of Cena’s ‘You Can’t See Me’ routine, only that night, it was LSU’s Reese performing the honors.
The trio will always be bound by the resulting controversy, whether they care or not.
For his part, Clark said he didn’t think Reese deserved accusations of bad sportsmanship. Meanwhile, Van Lith has suggested that detractors were more critical of Reese than Clark for making the same gesture because of a racist double standard.
Without a doubt, none of that mattered Monday in Albany.
In fact, neither did the Kim Mulkey saga.
Mulkey had been at the center of a media storm since he criticized Washington Post reporter Kent Babb for an article that would not be published until March 25. The profile raised questions about her treatment of LGBTQ+ players and quotes family members who say they haven’t spoken out. to the decorated coach in several years.
LSU Tigers head coach Kim Mulkey watches during the first half on Monday.
Mulkey accused Babb of writing a one-sided “hit piece,” although he admitted that he turned down the opportunity to give his side of the story for months before the article was published.
He has even threatened to sue the Washington Post: ‘The lawyers will look at it and when this season is over, they will call me and say, this is our next step.’ I’m not reading that stuff.’
If Mulkey feared the WaPo article would serve as a distraction, his players proved otherwise in a 78-69 Sweet 16 victory over UCLA.
Meanwhile, Iowa had it even easier with Colorado in the Sweet 16, winning 89-68.
And with that, the most anticipated rematch in the history of women’s basketball was set.