I came to the arena with the goal of writing a "Caitlin vs. Paige" preview. Then Lisa Bluder and Jan Jensen said during their interviews, quite directly, that they didn't want the game portrayed as Caitlin vs. Paige.
While I couldn't make that dream come true for them — they're megastars, and their intertwined histories are too important — I do think I did the story justice without doing anyone else a disservice.
As always, thank you all for reading.
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CLEVELAND — Caitlin Clark. Paige Bueckers. Two transformative players in college basketball on one court, with a trip to the national championship on the line, is a sportswriter's dream — if, perhaps, not a coach's.
"I do not want this to be a game that's promoted as Caitlin vs. Paige," Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder said Thursday at a news conference. "And I know it already has been. But I don't want that. I want it to be Iowa versus UConn and let these two women do what they do best."
Iowa assistant head coach Jan Jensen was even more direct in her pushback. "This isn't Paige vs. Caitlin," she said. "These two women have done amazing things for the sport, and they are amazing. I hope they both shine. But if that's what it was, then we should all sit down and play one-on-one. No one really wants to see that. But we understand that's what sells tickets and gets people hyper."
On one hand, Bluder and Jensen are indisputably right. Clark and Bueckers are merely two of 10 players that will be on the court, and there's no sense in diminishing the other eight players on the court and their ability to play integral roles in winning big games. Even after all its injuries, UConn's got no shortage of high-level talent, and Hawkeye fans know full well how necessary the role players are to the team's second-straight Final Four berth after a 30-year absence.
On the other hand... good luck with that.
iowa.rivals.com
While I couldn't make that dream come true for them — they're megastars, and their intertwined histories are too important — I do think I did the story justice without doing anyone else a disservice.
As always, thank you all for reading.
------
CLEVELAND — Caitlin Clark. Paige Bueckers. Two transformative players in college basketball on one court, with a trip to the national championship on the line, is a sportswriter's dream — if, perhaps, not a coach's.
"I do not want this to be a game that's promoted as Caitlin vs. Paige," Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder said Thursday at a news conference. "And I know it already has been. But I don't want that. I want it to be Iowa versus UConn and let these two women do what they do best."
Iowa assistant head coach Jan Jensen was even more direct in her pushback. "This isn't Paige vs. Caitlin," she said. "These two women have done amazing things for the sport, and they are amazing. I hope they both shine. But if that's what it was, then we should all sit down and play one-on-one. No one really wants to see that. But we understand that's what sells tickets and gets people hyper."
On one hand, Bluder and Jensen are indisputably right. Clark and Bueckers are merely two of 10 players that will be on the court, and there's no sense in diminishing the other eight players on the court and their ability to play integral roles in winning big games. Even after all its injuries, UConn's got no shortage of high-level talent, and Hawkeye fans know full well how necessary the role players are to the team's second-straight Final Four berth after a 30-year absence.
On the other hand... good luck with that.
Go Iowa Awesome - It's Only Caitlin vs. Paige in the Headlines
Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers' paths have crossed often over the years. Their Final Four matchup is the biggest yet.
iowa.rivals.com
