Taking a group of mostly 3 star recruits to two championship games

[DBQ Hawk]

Unlike football, where the difference in star rankings seems to matter less (lotta great 3s, lotta bust 5s), there’s a big difference in WBB between 4 and 5 stars

Almost all 5* puts you in the Final Four every year. Almost all 4* puts you maybe in the Sweet Sixteen

That’s why what we did is so special. We had the best 5* of all time, and a coach who knew just how to use her

 

[eyesofhawk]

is waaaay more impressive than winning a natty with 8+ five star recruits. The talent on the blue bloods is impressive, but I guarantee none of those five star recruits could have lifted up the last two Iowa teams like 22 did. Not a diss on the other Iowa players, just reality.

Not winning a championship is never way more impressive than winning a championship

 

[sadiehawkins]

South Carolina team could compete in the wnba now.

 

[kceasthawk]

40% of our starting lineup was 3 star super seniors
20% of our starting lineup (pre-injury) was a transfer from Central Michigan, who I can't find a recruiting ranking for but was probably a 2 star super senior
20% of our starting lineup was a solid 4 star sophomore, playing out of position as an undersized center
20% of our lineup was a true 5 star

Bluder hasn't been able to recruit many 4 stars until the past few years. Leading to those players being younger and not ready for big minutes.
Our top four substitutes are all four star players in Affolter, McCabe, O'Grady, and Feuerbach(transfer)
Then there's Edinger and the freshman/sophomore four stars who weren't ready for prime time this season.

Ratings are all well and good, but we all know very well, they don't mean a thing once they've been in college a couple of years. Most of these ladies has had some bright moments, but other then Syd vicious, NONE have been consistently up to those rankings in games. AOG has moments but she just has rarely been aggressive enough. Has a good game, and then disappears for a couple. I'm aware that her playing time can be sporadic but Jan has shown that she knows the post game, so if she's not playing there's a reason. McCabe can drop some three's but she's rarely in the flow on offense and looks lost on defense. Probably needs to play more, but like AOG there's probably a reason. Kylie just doesn't do it for me. Of all the bench players other then Syd, she's played quite a bit. She plays hard on defense, and she's quick, but other then one game I remember she has little offensive chops. Very inconsistent shooter. A turnover waiting to happen EVERYtime she dribbles the ball. Consistently drives into traffic or along the baseline with no where to go. When she takes off with the ball, I cringe, knowing its probably a turnover. Just one mans opinion I guess....

 

[Libertylover]

And their coach had to make the comment after the game "no one thought we could do this". One of the talking heads said "yea, they lost all their starters from last year". LOL.

Great team. Glad the Hawks played a damn good game. Always easier to stomach a loss, if you did your best, but we're just outmatched by a better team. ZERO shame in that loss.

But give me a break with the "no one believed in us" garbage comment. Unless you are saying that no one thought you could go undefeated, but I think many believed that too

I didn’t understand that statement either, like they are some under sized, under talented team. She also said in the press conference that she’s ok with trans players getting into women’s basketball, as long as you consider yourself a woman. This just opened the door for Lisa to raid the Iowa men’s team. Do it now before it catches on everywhere else, and we may sneak one championship in. I bet if we did this, and beat South Carolina next year, their coaches tune may change, or she would just fill her team with trans players the next year. This is ridiculous, and could be a reality soon with top female players getting 7 figure deals.

 

[littlez]

I didn’t understand that statement either, like they are some under sized, under talented team. She also said in the press conference that she’s ok with trans players getting into women’s basketball, as long as you consider yourself a woman. This just opened the door for Lisa to raid the Iowa men’s team. Do it now before it catches on everywhere else, and we may sneak one championship in. I bet if we did this, and beat South Carolina next year, their coaches tune may change, or she would just fill her team with trans players the next year. This is ridiculous, and could be a reality soon with top female players getting 7 figure deals.

Cut the bullshit. First of all nobody from the Iowa men’s team is a trans and moving to the women’s team. You’re just another one of those guys. Also, while South Carolina was made up of 5 star players I do believe they lost their entire starting lineup from last year. So to go 38-0 with 5 new starters is impressive no matter what.

 

[BioHawk]

Here's the problem with your argument.

South Carolina roster:
Every player=5 star except one that was a 4 star.

It's a literal dream team. Put Caitlin on that team and she has Natties last year and this year at minimum.

She would have had one every year she was in college, even if she didn't start her freshmen year.

 

[longliveCS40]

She would have had one every year she was in college, even if she didn't start her freshmen year.

Likely

 

[Libertylover]

Cut the bullshit. First of all nobody from the Iowa men’s team is a trans and moving to the women’s team. You’re just another one of those guys. Also, while South Carolina was made up of 5 star players I do believe they lost their entire starting lineup from last year. So to go 38-0 with 5 new starters is impressive no matter what.

The giant center was a starter for them last year. Pretty impressive to go 2 deep with top 10-15 players if you actually loose 4 starters from last year. Those of you who want biological men who “identify as women “ coming into the women’s game need to cut the bullshit. I was only half kidding about the Iowa men, because mediocre men’s players become superstars by growing their hair and identifying as a woman. I knew she didn’t really believe what she was saying, but the political pressure these days for public figures to buy into this shit is enormous. So much for title ix to give women opportunities in college athletics.

 

[2D_]

Also, while South Carolina was made up of 5 star players I do believe they lost their entire starting lineup from last year. So to go 38-0 with 5 new starters is impressive no matter what.

Nothing says fighting adversity like reloading with the best 5 star recruits in the nation lmao

 

[IANit]

Your point may have been about Clark’s greatness, but there was zero reason for you to put down the other athletes who worked their asses off to get the Hawkeyes into those championship!

From ESPN rankings:
Feuerbach 4* #71 in country
Marshall 3*
Affolter 4* (prospectnation.com)
Martin 3*
Stuelke 4* #45 in country
O’Grady 4* #92 in country
Edinger 4* #39 in country
McCabe 4* #89 in country

Including these two since you included last years team:
Warnock 4* #84 in the country
Czinano 3*

I’d say your premise of “poor old Iowa only had one good player” is pure BS. Yes, CC22 elevated this group to another level, but she wasn’t out there playing with a bunch of scrubs from an intramural team from Burge Hall.

We weren’t as deep or as tall as the Cocks, but that will always be an issue at Iowa. We can’t afford for a player like Ediger (ranked in the top 40 of her class) to be averaging 1.8 points as a junior. UConn and SC can have that, as they’ll just bring in a couple more top 40 posts.

ESPN just put out a too-early poll for next year. Iowa isn't in the Top 25. You think that is because Gabbie Marshall and Kate Martin (both 3-stars with all due respect to them) are moving on? Even if you could bring both back for another year with Caitlin on to the WNBA this likely wouldn't be a Top-25 team. If Caitlin alone came back Iowa's easily a Top 5 or 10 team.

 

[IANit]

Nothing says fighting adversity like reloading with the best 5 star recruits in the nation lmao

Come on - their incoming 5 stars were only numbers 13 and 17. They even had a couple of 4 stars rated 25 and 40. Clearly it was one of Dawn's greatest coaching feats ever to turn such pedestrian players into national champs.

 

[abby97]

Ratings are all well and good, but we all know very well, they don't mean a thing once they've been in college a couple of years. Most of these ladies has had some bright moments, but other then Syd vicious, NONE have been consistently up to those rankings in games. AOG has moments but she just has rarely been aggressive enough. Has a good game, and then disappears for a couple. I'm aware that her playing time can be sporadic but Jan has shown that she knows the post game, so if she's not playing there's a reason. McCabe can drop some three's but she's rarely in the flow on offense and looks lost on defense. Probably needs to play more, but like AOG there's probably a reason. Kylie just doesn't do it for me. Of all the bench players other then Syd, she's played quite a bit. She plays hard on defense, and she's quick, but other then one game I remember she has little offensive chops. Very inconsistent shooter. A turnover waiting to happen EVERYtime she dribbles the ball. Consistently drives into traffic or along the baseline with no where to go. When she takes off with the ball, I cringe, knowing its probably a turnover. Just one mans opinion I guess....

I'm sorry I don't agree. In women's sports you are either athletically gifted or you are not. A good coach can definitely make a young lady a better player, they can make them more skilled, help them gain experience, strategies and techniques, put on more muscle, etc. but the percentage of women who are athletically gifted is way smaller then the percentage of men. I believe we kid ourselves into believing women are the same as men in sports, but they are not. One can't teach the ability to jump higher or run faster or be more coordinated, etc. Those are God given traits and need to be recruited.

 

[SunzOutGunzOut]

 

[intrepodor]

is waaaay more impressive than winning a natty with 8+ five star recruits. The talent on the blue bloods is impressive, but I guarantee none of those five star recruits could have lifted up the last two Iowa teams like 22 did. Not a diss on the other Iowa players, just reality.

And this is why Bluder should have been coach of the year.
Staley recruiter of the year.

 

[binsfeldcyhawk2]

Your point may have been about Clark’s greatness, but there was zero reason for you to put down the other athletes who worked their asses off to get the Hawkeyes into those championship!

I don't think it was intended to "put down" the other players.

Just pointing out the massive disparity in raw talent between the two teams.

 

[kceasthawk]

I'm sorry I don't agree. In women's sports you are either athletically gifted or you are not. A good coach can definitely make a young lady a better player, they can make them more skilled, help them gain experience, strategies and techniques, put on more muscle, etc. but the percentage of women who are athletically gifted is way smaller then the percentage of men. I believe we kid ourselves into believing women are the same as men in sports, but they are not. One can't teach the ability to jump higher or run faster or be more coordinated, etc. Those are God given traits and need to be recruited.

How does that differ from what I said? They may have been 4 star recruits, but other then Syd none of them has lived up to that level to this point.....