Caitlin Clark's Game-Winning Three Celebration at Cotie McMahon Comes With History
Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark drained a game-winning three-pointer in the final seconds to lift her team over the Washington Mystics on June 8. Then she celebrated in the face of Mystics rookie Cotie McMahon, with whom she had a rich history that dates back to their time in the Big 10.
Caitlin Clark flexing on Cotie McMahon after burying the game-winner.
— Underdog WNBA (@UnderdogWNBA) June 9, 2026
Big Ten rivalries never die.pic.twitter.com/n2zLc6FO5H
The History Between Caitlin Clark and Cotie McMahon Adds Another Chapter After Fever vs Mystics
Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes played McMahon's Ohio State Buckeyes several times a year when both were on the team. McMahon was at Ohio State from 2022 to 2025 before transferring to Ole Miss for her final college season, while Clark was on the Hawkeyes from 2020 to 2024.
After a 2024 game that Iowa won, Clark took a free Ohio State t-shirt that was a giveaway for the game and posed for a photo with it afterwards, which went viral and angered many Buckeyes fans.
DEMON TIME pic.twitter.com/Jthhv0x41B
— correlation (@nosyone4) March 8, 2025
It also seemed to irk McMahon. One year later, when the Buckeyes beat the Hawkeyes in a game in March, McMahon did a postgame interview where she said, "Not gonna get into all of it, but let's just say [Iowa is] a little disrespectful as far as how they view us. So we take that personal, I take that personal."
The full question and answer + bonus answer complimenting Iowa when asked about OSU's mindset https://t.co/PAabF45csf pic.twitter.com/r17yHBtZQH
— CJ Fogler 🫡 (@cjzero) March 8, 2025
Granted, Clark wasn't on the team at the time McMahon said this. But it's still clear that Cotie's sentiment towards the Hawkeyes started when Clark was still at Iowa, and likely was in part because of Clark's celebration with the t-shirt.
Not to mention that McMahon was the primary defender on Clark for much of their matchups, and typically tried to guard her with physicality, as was the usualy scouting report on Clark during her college career.
Clark knows this better than anybody. She also surely knows what McMahon said about the Hawkeyes last year, and how her fan base feels about the former Ohio State star.
Caitlin Clark's Three-Point Celebration Toward Cotie McMahon Must Feel Vindicating
It certainly seemed like Clark know who she was looking at when making that game-winning celebration. Regardless of whether she added some to it because it was McMahon, that had to feel good for Clark, as her most recent game-winner was during her college career.
Plus, the Fever needed that win after nearly losing it in the second half, which included Clark uncharacteristically missing two free throws.
Therefore, Clark would have celebrated in that way regardless, given the implications. But the fact McMahon was guarding her surely made it sweeter.
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Grant Young covers women’s basketball for Women’s Fastbreak and Indiana Fever On SI. His coverage centers on league trends and the growth of women’s basketball, both on and off the court. He also creates digital content focused on the sport’s biggest moments and personalities.
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