Caitlin Clark credits team success for her latest honor
Iowa senior guard named Big Ten Player of the Year for third straight season
By Susan Harman
IOWA CITY, Iowa – To no one’s surprise Iowa senior Caitlin Clark was named the Big Ten Player of the Year for the third season in a row. This year Clark has become the career-leading scorer in college basketball, having passed LSU’s Pete Maravich and both women’s record-holders for D-I basketball, Lynette Woodard and Kelsey Plum.
“Our team is playing really good basketball, and that always helps a lot when these types of awards (are made),” Clark told the Big Ten Network. “I think the Big Ten has so many tremendous players in it. So anytime you win an award like this it’s obviously very special, and I’ve been lucky enough to do it three times.”
The Hawkeyes are 101-29 in her four seasons, won two Big Ten Tournament titles, one regular-season title and reached the national championship game for the first time in Iowa women’s basketball history.
Clark averages an NCAA-leading 32.3 points and 8.6 assists per game. She has also been the primary reason that Iowa has played before sellout crowds at home and on the road during the conference season.
This is the sixth time in seven years that an Iowa player was named the Player of the Year. Megan Gustafson (2018, 2019) and Kathleen Doyle (2020) were the others. Iowa players have been so honored 10 times in the Big Ten’s history.
Clark won all the national POY awards a year ago and has only performed better this season.
“I wouldn’t be who I am if it wasn’t for my coaches and my teammates,” Clark said. “Coach (Lisa) Bluder has really allowed me to thrive ever since I stepped on campus, so I’m really thankful for her too.”
Clark and Indiana’s Mackenzie Holmes were the only two unanimous selections for the All-Big Ten first team. Clark is the first UI player to be a first-team selection all four seasons.
Iowa 6th-year Kate Martin and sophomore Hannah Stuelke were both named to the second team.
“I want to congratulate Caitlin on being the three-time player of the year,” Bluder said. “That’s an amazing accomplishment and also for Hannah Stuelke and Kate Martin to be second team.”
Stuelke averages 14.4 points and 6.9 rebounds and scored a career-high 47 against Penn State. Stuelke’s development has helped Iowa cope with the loss of All-Big Ten center Monika Czinano.
Martin, who has started every game of her five-year career averages 13 points and 6.4 rebounds in a different kind of role this year. With the losses of Czinano and McKenna Warnock, Martin was asked to score more, and she’s done that. She is a do-it-all kind of player for the Hawkeyes.
Bluder said she was disappointed that junior Sydney Affolter was not named the conference’s sixth-player of the year. That honor went to Michigan State sophomore Theryn Hallock.
Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff was named coach of the year.
*Molly Davis. Bluder was reluctant to go into detail about Molly Davis’s injury in the Ohio State game on Sunday other than to say it involved her right kneecap. In a prior release Iowa said Davis will be involved with physical therapy to try to return to the team during the NCAA tournament.
“Basically it’s not a torn ACL and it will not require surgery,” Bluder said.
As of noon Tuesday Bluder hadn’t seen Davis but had talked to her on the phone. She said Davis was ecstatic that the injury was not a torn ACL.
“Everybody was so excited when they heard the news,” Bluder said. “Not just because she can hopefully return for the NCAA tournament, but also that she doesn’t have to go through surgery and go through that rehab.
“I just felt for her, like my heart was broken when she fell,” junior Kylie Feuerbach said. “Molly’s just such a great player and so important to this team and such an awesome girl. (We’ll) be there with her every step of the way. We’ll have her back every step of the way.”
“It’s an odd thing to say that an injury could be a lift, but at least it’s not the worst,” Affolter said.
“She’s very tough person too,” Feuerbach continued. “She’s going to be getting as ready as quickly as possible to get back on the court. I think when she texted us in our group chat (Monday) night we were all like instantly texting like ‘Yay, and let’s go.’ It’s a big relief.”
Big Ten Honors (voted by the coaches)
Player of the Year: Caitlin Clark, Iowa
First team: Clark; Mackenzie Holmes, Indiana; Jacy Sheldon, OSU; Alexis Markowski, Nebraska; Cotie McMahon, Ohio State; Laila Phelia, Michigan; Serah Williams, Wisconsin; Shyanne Sellers, Maryland; Julia Ayrault, Michigan State; Sara Scalia, Indiana.
Second team: Hannah Stuelke, Iowa; Jaz Shelley, Nebraska; Destiny Adams, Rutgers; Makira Cook, Illinois; Moira Joiner, Michigan State; Chloe Moor-McNeil, Indiana; Celeste Taylor, Ohio State; Kate Martin, Iowa; Jakia Brown-Turner, Maryland; Ashley Owusu, Penn State; Dee Dee Hagemann, Michigan State; Taylor Thierry, Ohio State. Makenna Marisa, PSU and Kendall Bostic, Illinois, were on the media 2nd team.
All-Defensive Team: Celeste Taylor, OSU; Leilani Kapinus, PSU; Chloe Moore-McNeil, Indiana; Serah Williams, Wisconsin; Mackenzie Holmes, Indiana; Jacy Sheldon,* OSU.
All-Freshman Team: Natalie Potts, Nebraska; Grace Grocholski, Minnesota; Mary Ashley Stevenson, Purdue; Gretchen Dolan, Illinois; Logan Nissley, Nebraska; Rashunda Jones*, Purdue.
Defensive Player of the Year: Celeste Taylor, OSU; Serah Williams, Wisconsin*
Freshman of the Year: Natalie Potts, Nebraska; Mary Ashley Stevenson*, Purdue
Sixth Player of the Year: Theryn Hallock, Michigan State
Coach of the Year: Kevin McGuff, Ohio State
*Media selection
