Keys To The Game, Final Thoughts For South Carolina - Iowa

Author:
Andrew Lyon
Apr 07, 2024

No matter who wins this afternoon's national championship bout between the South Carolina Gamecocks and Iowa Hawkeyes, I think we can all agree on this much: the path to victory isn't simple. Both teams will have to accomplish multiple tasks in different areas to leave the arena with the trophy. So, what will Dawn Staley's squad have to do to get revenge over Caitlin Clark and the Hawkeyes this afternoon?

1) Limit Caitlin As Best You Can

As much as Gamecock fans get sick of hearing about No. 22, there's a good reason why she gets so much coverage. Clark is one of the most gifted shooters in college basketball history, men's or women's, and so there's no way you can stop Caitlin: you can only try to contain her. For South Carolina, this will mean using their depth to their advantage by throwing multiple bodies at Caitlin throughout the game. They'll also have to ensure they don't let her get into the paint area consistently, where she arguably does the most damage.

2) Win The Battle In Transition

Both teams love to run the floor, as evidenced by Iowa and South Carolina ranking 4th and 41st in the country in Pace or average possessions per 40 minutes per warrenolan.com. The centers for both teams, South Carolina's Kamilla Cardoso and Iowa's Hannah Stuelke will often try and take advantage of a defense that's on their heels, with Cardoso using her high motor, height, and overall body dexterity to get to the rim. Stuelke, however, can match up with Kamilla in each of those facets except for her height. Who will take advantage of these opportunities the most, both in this matchup and as an entire team?

3) Don't Let The Moment Be Too Big

This team has been advertised as one that stays loose more often than Staley would like, but this game is for the national championship, meaning that everyone will have jitters for at least the first quarter. Who can get themselves under control the quickest? Both teams have motivation that goes outside of getting a ring, but at the end of the day, I think South Carolina will have too much for the Hawkeyes, and they claim the program's third-ever national title.

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