No. 1 South Carolina defeated No. 1 Iowa, 87-75, during a NCAA Championship game at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio, on Sunday. The Gamecocks finished the season undefeated with 38 wins. The game marks Iowa’s second straight runner-up finish for the title.
Iowa scored 15 points on turnovers and outscored the Gamecocks in the first quarter. Guard Caitlin Clark led the team with 30 points followed by guard Kate Martin with 16 and guard Sydney Affolter with 12. The Hawkeyes held the lead for 16:31 of the game.
South Carolina scored 48 points in the paint, 37 from the bench, and 30 on second chances. Guard Tessa Johnson led the team with 19 points followed by center Kamilla Cardoso with 15 and guard Te-Hina Paopao with 14. The Gamecocks outscored the Hawkeyes in all but the first quarter and held the lead for 21:09 of the game.
Overall there were three lead changes and five times the game was tied. There were over 18,000 fans in attendance.
The end of the game marks the end of the collegiate careers of five Iowa players: Molly Davis, Sharon Goodman, Gabbie, Marshall, Clark, and Martin.
