IOWA CITY – 2-Seed Iowa dropped 15-Seed SE Louisiana, 95-43 inside a sold out Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Friday afternoon.
NPOY front runner Caitlin Clark led Iowa with her 17th game this season with +25 pts, +5 rebs, and +5 asts.
The junior finished with 26 points, 12 assists, and 7 rebounds.
It was Lisa Bluder’s 10th First Round win the NCAA Tournament which is the most by any head coach in Iowa women’s basketball history.
Second-most points in program history scored in an NCAA Tournament game.
Coming into the game, SELA was giving up 54.5 ppg and Iowa had 54 points at halftime.
Iowa is 7-3 in the NCAA Tournament since 2019.
Clark broke the junior season record for most assists in a single season.
Iowa improved to 16-1 on its home floor.
McKenna Warnock notched three blocks for a new career high.
Clark has scored 20 or more points 30 times this season.
Monika Czinano registered her 750th career rebound which is good for top-15 in school history.
The Hawkeyes held the Lady Lions to 11 points in the second half.
Czinano registered 22 points (10-12 FG) and eight boards.
It was Iowa’s fourth straight opening round victory. Iowa has won seven out of the last eight First Round matchups.
Clark is the only player in the nation with more than 870 points, 240 rebounds, 280 assists, and 45 steals this season.
UP NEXT
2-Seed Iowa will host 10-Seed Georgia in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. Tipoff will be at 2 p.m. (CT) inside CHA on ABC.
