# 2023–24 Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team

The 2023–24 Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team represented the University of Iowa during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Hawkeyes were led by head coach Lisa Bluder in her twenty-fourth and final season, and played their home games at Carver–Hawkeye Arena as a member of the Big Ten Conference.
After finishing second in the conference regular season standings, the Hawkeyes won the Big Ten tournament for the third consecutive season and received an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. The Hawkeyes were named a No. 1 seed (Iowa's first since 1992) in the Albany 2 regional and were ranked as the tournament's 2nd overall seed. During the NCAA tournament they defeated Holy Cross, West Virginia, Colorado, LSU, and UConn to return to the title game for the second consecutive season. However, the Hawkeyes were defeated by top-ranked and undefeated South Carolina, 87–75, in the national championship game. Iowa finished the season with a record of 34–5 to set a program record and tie the Big Ten record for wins in a season.
Senior Caitlin Clark, who entered the season as the reigning National Player of the Year and a pre-season All-American, exceeded impossibly high expectations to leave an indelible mark on the University of Iowa and women's college basketball. Clark capped her career by being named both Big Ten Player of the Year and a unanimous First-team All-American for the third time, swept National Player of the Year awards for the second time, and finished with numerous NCAA records – highlighted by the NCAA career scoring record. Despite Clark's on-court accomplishments, she remained consistent that her legacy is more closely tied to broader impact – growing interest in the sport and inspiring the next generation. The final three games of Clark's career became the three most watched women's college basketball games of all-time. On April 10, at a celebration event at Carver–Hawkeye Arena, Iowa announced that Clark's jersey number 22 would be the third number to be retired in program history. Clark's jersey was retired at the Iowa–USC women's basketball game on February 2, 2025, a game in which the unranked Hawkeyes upset the number-four ranked Trojans 76–69.
The senior class, led by Clark, Kate Martin, and Gabbie Marshall, concluded their college careers having secured four NCAA tournament appearances, including three Sweet Sixteens and two Final Fours.

## Previous season

The Hawkeyes finished the 2022–23 season with a 31–7 record, including 15–3 in Big Ten play. They won the 2023 Big Ten women's basketball tournament and earned the conference's automatic bid to the 2023 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament. They advanced to the championship game for the first time in program history, but they lost to LSU 85–102.

## Off-season
### Departures

| Name | # | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Shateah Wettering | 13 | F | 6'0" | Sophomore (RS) | Montezuma, IA | Transferred to Northern Iowa |
| McKenna Warnock | 14 | F/G | 6'1" | Senior | Madison, WI | Graduated; chose not to return |
| Monika Czinano | 25 | F/C | 6'3" | Senior (5th-year) | Watertown, MN | Completed college eligibility/ Declared for WNBA draft |
* ↑ Warnock had one more season of eligibility, but opted to attend dental school.

### Recruits

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Ava Jones W | Nickerson, KS | Nickerson | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | N/A | Jul 3, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 93 ||||||
| Kennise Johnson G | Joliet, IL | Example Academy | 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) | N/A | Jul 1, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2023 Player Commits". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on July 8, 2023. Retrieved May 10, 2024. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 15, 2023* 2:00 p.m., BTN | | DePaul Crossover at Kinnick | W 94–72 | — | 34 – Clark | 14 – O'Grady | 10 – Clark | Kinnick Stadium (55,646) Iowa City, IA |
| October 22, 2023* 2:00 p.m., B1G+ | No. 3 | Clarke | W 122–49 | — | 27 – Stuelke | 10 – Stuelke | 9 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 6, 2023* 6:30 p.m., B1G+ | No. 3 | Fairleigh Dickinson | W 102–46 | 1–0 | 28 – Clark | 9 – Stuelke | 10 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| November 9, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 3 | vs. No. 8 Virginia Tech | W 80–76 | 2–0 | 44 – Clark | 14 – Affolter | 6 – Clark | Spectrum Center (15,196) Charlotte, NC |
| November 12, 2023* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 3 | at Northern Iowa | W 94–53 | 3–0 | 24 – Clark | 10 – Clark | 11 – Clark | McLeod Center (6,790) Cedar Falls, IA |
| November 16, 2023* 7:30 p.m., FS1 | No. 2 | Kansas State | L 58–65 | 3–1 | 24 – Clark | 11 – Stuelke | 3 – Tied | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| November 19, 2023* 6:00 p.m., FS1 | No. 2 | Drake | W 113–90 | 4–1 | 35 – Clark | 6 – Clark | 10 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| November 24, 2023* 6:30 p.m., FloHoops | No. 5 | vs. Purdue Fort Wayne Gulf Coast Showcase first round | W 98–59 | 5–1 | 29 – Clark | 9 – Affolter | 8 – Clark | Hertz Arena (3,313) Estero, FL |
| November 25, 2023* 6:30 p.m., FloHoops | No. 5 | vs. Florida Gulf Coast Gulf Coast Showcase semifinals | W 100–62 | 6–1 | 21 – Clark | 6 – Clark | 6 – Tied | Hertz Arena (4,257) Estero, FL |
| November 26, 2023* 6:30 p.m., FloHoops | No. 5 | vs. No. 16 Kansas State Gulf Coast Showcase championship | W 77–70 | 7–1 | 32 – Clark | 10 – Martin | 6 – Clark | Hertz Arena (3,007) Estero, FL |
| December 2, 2023* 12:30 p.m., FS1 | No. 4 | Bowling Green | W 99–65 | 8–1 | 24 – Clark | 11 – Goodman | 11 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| December 6, 2023* 6:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 4 | at Iowa State Rivalry | W 67–58 | 9–1 | 35 – Clark | 9 – Clark | 5 – Clark | Hilton Coliseum (14,267) Ames, IA |
| December 10, 2023 1:30 p.m., BTN | No. 4 | at Wisconsin | W 87–65 | 10–1 (1–0) | 28 – Clark | 12 – Affolter | 5 – Clark | Kohl Center (14,252) Madison, WI |
| December 16, 2023* 6:00 p.m., BTN | No. 4 | vs. Cleveland State Hy-Vee Hawkeye Showcase | W 104–75 | 11–1 | 38 – Clark | 13 – Stuelke | 5 – Tied | Wells Fargo Arena (14,786) Des Moines, IA |
| December 21, 2023* 5:00 p.m., B1G+ | No. 4 | Loyola Chicago | W 98–69 | 12–1 | 35 – Clark | 17 – Clark | 10 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| December 30, 2023 1:00 p.m., BTN | No. 4 | Minnesota | W 94–71 | 13–1 (2–0) | 35 – Clark | 8 – Stuelke | 10 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| January 2, 2024 8:00 p.m., Peacock | No. 4 | Michigan State | W 76–73 | 14–1 (3–0) | 40 – Clark | 11 – Martin | 5 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| January 5, 2024 5:00 p.m., BTN | No. 4 | at Rutgers | W 103–69 | 15–1 (4–0) | 29 – Clark | 10 – Tied | 10 – Clark | Jersey Mike's Arena (8,000) Piscataway, NJ |
| January 10, 2024 7:00 p.m., Peacock | No. 3 | at Purdue | W 96–71 | 16–1 (5–0) | 26 – Clark | 10 – Clark | 10 – Clark | Mackey Arena (14,876) West Lafayette, IN |
| January 13, 2024 7:00 p.m., FOX | No. 3 | No. 14 Indiana | W 84–57 | 17–1 (6–0) | 30 – Clark | 12 – Martin | 11 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| January 16, 2024 8:00 p.m., Peacock | No. 2 | Wisconsin | W 96–50 | 18–1 (7–0) | 32 – Clark | 7 – Clark | 5 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| January 21, 2024 11:00 a.m., NBC | No. 2 | at No. 18 Ohio State | L 92–100 | 18–2 (7–1) | 45 – Clark | 7 – Tied | 8 – Davis | Value City Arena (18,660) Columbus, OH |
| January 27, 2024 1:00 p.m., BTN | No. 5 | Nebraska | W 92–73 | 19–2 (8–1) | 38 – Clark | 10 – Clark | 6 – Tied | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| January 31, 2024 7:00 p.m., Peacock | No. 3 | at Northwestern | W 110–74 | 20–2 (9–1) | 35 – Clark | 9 – Stuelke | 10 – Clark | Welsh–Ryan Arena (7,039) Evanston, IL |
| February 3, 2024 7:00 p.m., FOX | No. 3 | at Maryland | W 93–85 | 21–2 (10–1) | 38 – Clark | 10 – Martin | 12 – Clark | Xfinity Center (17,950) College Park, MD |
| February 8, 2024 8:00 p.m., BTN | No. 2 | Penn State | W 111–93 | 22–2 (11–1) | 47 – Stuelke | 16 – Martin | 15 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| February 11, 2024 12:00 p.m., FOX | No. 2 | at Nebraska | L 79–82 | 22–3 (11–2) | 31 – Clark | 8 – Clark | 10 – Clark | Pinnacle Bank Arena (15,042) Lincoln, NE |
| February 15, 2024 7:00 p.m., Peacock | No. 4 | Michigan | W 106–89 | 23–3 (12–2) | 49 – Clark | 5 – Tied | 13 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| February 22, 2024 7:00 p.m., Peacock | No. 4 | at No. 14 Indiana | L 69–86 | 23–4 (12–3) | 24 – Clark | 10 – Clark | 9 – Clark | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| February 25, 2024 12:00 p.m., FS1 | No. 4 | Illinois | W 101–85 | 24–4 (13–3) | 24 – Clark | 15 – Clark | 10 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| February 28, 2024 8:00 p.m., Peacock | No. 6 | at Minnesota | W 108–60 | 25–4 (14–3) | 33 – Clark | 10 – Clark | 12 – Clark | Williams Arena (14,625) Minneapolis, MN |
| March 3, 2024 12:00 p.m., FOX | No. 6 | No. 2 Ohio State College GameDay | W 93–83 | 26–4 (15–3) | 35 – Clark | 9 – Tied | 9 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998) Iowa City, IA |
| Big Ten Women's Tournament |||||||||
| March 8, 2024 5:30 p.m., BTN | (2) No. 3 | vs. (7) Penn State Quarterfinals | W 95–62 | 27–4 | 24 – Clark | 10 – Clark | 7 – Clark | Target Center (18,481) Minneapolis, MN |
| March 9, 2024 4:30 p.m., BTN | (2) No. 3 | vs. (6) Michigan Semifinals | W 95–68 | 28–4 | 28 – Clark | 7 – Affolter | 15 – Clark | Target Center (18,746) Minneapolis, MN |
| March 10, 2024 11:00 a.m., CBS | (2) No. 3 | vs. (5) Nebraska Championship | W 94–89 | 29–4 | 34 – Clark | 11 – Affolter | 12 – Clark | Target Center (18,534) Minneapolis, MN |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| March 23, 2024* 2:00 p.m., ABC | (1 A2) No. 2 | (16 A2) Holy Cross First round | W 91–65 | 30–4 | 27 – Clark | 14 – Martin | 10 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,324) Iowa City, IA |
| March 25, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ESPN | (1 A2) No. 2 | (8 A2) West Virginia Second round | W 64–54 | 31–4 | 32 – Clark | 11 – Stuelke | 3 – Clark | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,324) Iowa City, IA |
| March 30, 2024* 2:30 p.m., ABC | (1 A2) No. 2 | vs. (5 A2) No. 17 Colorado Sweet Sixteen | W 89–68 | 32–4 | 29 – Clark | 10 – Stuelke | 15 – Clark | MVP Arena (13,878) Albany, NY |
| April 1, 2024* 6:15 p.m., ESPN | (1 A2) No. 2 | vs. (3 A2) No. 8 LSU Elite Eight | W 94–87 | 33–4 | 41 – Clark | 7 – Clark | 12 – Clark | MVP Arena (13,888) Albany, NY |
| April 5, 2024* 8:30 p.m., ESPN | (1 A2) No. 2 | vs. (3 P3) No. 10 UConn Final Four | W 71–69 | 34–4 | 23 – Stuelke | 9 – Clark | 7 – Clark | Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (18,284) Cleveland, OH |
| April 7, 2024* 2:00 p.m., ABC | (1 A2) No. 2 | vs. (1 A1) No. 1 South Carolina National Championship | L 75–87 | 34–5 | 30 – Clark | 8 – Clark | 5 – Clark | Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (18,300) Cleveland, OH |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. A2=Albany 2. P3=Portland 3. A1=Albany 1. All times are in Central Time. Source: |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking т = Tied with team above or below ( ) = First-place votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Final |
| AP | 3 | 2 (13) | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Coaches | 3 | 2 (9) | 6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 5т | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |

## 2024 WNBA Draft

| Round | Pick | Player | WNBA Club |
| 1 | 1 | Caitlin Clark | Indiana Fever |
| 2 | 18 | Kate Martin | Las Vegas Aces |

## Ava Jones injury and medical retirement

Freshman Ava Jones was not cleared to play during the 2023–24 season. Two days after she committed to Iowa in 2022, and the day before she was set to start play in an AAU tournament in Louisville, Kentucky, she and her family were struck by an impaired driver while standing on a downtown sidewalk. Her father Trey Jones was killed, her mother Amy Jones suffered serious injuries, and Ava suffered a traumatic brain injury and severe damage to both knees. Ava ultimately took a medical disqualification and retired from basketball on June 7, 2024. In October 2024, the driver, Michael Hurley, was convicted of murder, driving under the influence, and multiple assault charges.