The Iowa Number 22 is up in the rafters in the Carver-Hawkeye stadium, never to be worn again. It is no small feat to have your jersey retired, and Caitlin Clark was certainly deserving of this impressive distinction. However, it came a lot earlier than people were expecting. CC suited up for her last game as a Hawkeye less than a year ago, without even realizing such a day would come. But did coach Fran McCaffery expect the move?

Coach McCaffery knows Caitlin Clark. Why wouldn’t he? She’s committed to his son, Connor. However, it’s more than that for the Iowa Men’s coach. In a pre-game press conference ahead of an important match with Purdue, McCaffery talked about CC’s impressive achievements. He said,

“It really meant a lot to her, and understandably so.”“A lot of times when you’re going through it, it’s not the same. Now you can reflect back and start listing her accomplishments, which are so incredibly impressive. What she did, not only for our program, but women’s basketball, has been nothing we’ve ever seen before. Nothing we’ve ever envisioned.” The coach said about Clark’s jersey retirement.

But did the 65-year-old predict this on her arrival? While it wasn’t something they could predict, the coach stated that he saw greatness in Caitlin Clark when she arrived in Iowa. “You could kind of see it coming when she was a freshman—how great she was. Not to be overlooked. Her impact as a young kid, I said to you guys then, ‘this is a generational talent.’ I said that after ten or fifteen games.”

In her first season as a Hawkeye, Caitlin Clark stunned the basketball world with her game. She put up 26, 7, and 6 as a rookie on insanely efficient shooting splits, averaging 40% from deep. These are not light numbers in college basketball, but she kept outdoing herself every year. Fran McCaffery echoed that sentiment. “If you know anything about the game, you could see that, okay, it’s only gonna get better.”

The Iowa head coach had nothing but respect and admiration for the Indiana Fever star. What Caitlin Clark did at Iowa State is super tough to repeat. She changed the landscape of Iowa basketball, and the Hawkeyes are looking to carry forward the momentum she built.

Hawkeyes stage impressive upset leading up to Caitlin Clark’s big day

With how deeply competitive Caitlin Clark is, it would have left a sour taste in her mouth if Iowa lost on the day of her jersey retirement. Oh, it was close! The USC Trojans did not come to play around, looking to maintain their fifteen-game winning streak. But when Clark is back at home, nobody can match the Iowa Hawkeyes!

The Hawkeyes started strong with an 18-1 run, but Lindsay Gottlieb seemed to have an answer ready as the second quarter began. JuJu Watkins and the Trojans went on an impressive second-quarter run as well, nearly mirroring Iowa with a 17-1 burst. However, Iowa simply wanted it more.

Lucy Olsen and Addison O’Grady took over the Carver-Hawkeye arena on Sunday. After USC’s push in the second quarter, the Hawkeyes pressed on the gas. A hopeless start turned into a vibrant comeback! They ran the court, they played defense, and they hit their shots.

Olsen, a veteran guard, burst out for 28 in front of her former teammates, leading the comeback effort. Olsen and O’Grady scored 23 out of the 25 fourth-quarter points that Iowa had, sealing the deal against the Trojans.

It was an impressive showing, especially considering the rough patch that the Hawkeyes went through this season. Caitlin Clark has always backed her alma mater and this time they pulled through for her big day.

What will be really fun to watch, however, is Caitlin Clark’s comeback to Iowa this summer. Even though it comes in the form of a pre-season game, fans are still excited beyond measure! It will be a big deal for Caitlin Clark to get to play at home again, and everyone’s excited.