The surprise announcement that Lisa Bluder was retiring as the head coach at Iowa -- followed shortly thereafter by the news that longtime assistant Jan Jensen would be replacing her as head coach -- brought forth a bevy of heartfelt reactions from former players and others around the women's college basketball world.
Caitlin Clark, the greatest basketball player in Iowa history and the driving force behind the Hawkeyes' back-to-back national championship game appearances, gave Bluder her flowers.
Megan Gustafson, the Iowa women's basketball GOAT before Clark, also congratulated Bluder.
Kate Martin, another recent Iowa great who also found out on Monday that she made the Las Vegas Aces' 12-woman roster for the 2024 season, seemed as stunned by the timing of Bluder's decision as everyone else.
Martin also gave Bluder her thanks and expressed excitement about Jan Jensen taking over as head coach.
Former Iowa player and current Iowa assistant coach Tania Davis also thanked Bluder.
Two other former Iowa women's basketball standouts, Kachine Alexander and Jade Rogers, also praised Bluder and her time at Iowa.
Iowa broadcasting stalwart Gary Dolphin praised Bluder as well.
UConn legend and ESPN college basketball analyst Rebecca Lobo offered her congratulations.
The announcement that Jan Jensen would replace Bluder was widely praised by former players, too, starting with Caitlin Clark.
Kachine Alexander and Jade Rogers were also excited to see Jensen take charge of Iowa basketball.
Current player Jada Gyamfi also praised the Jensen hire.
Jensen will be new to head coaching, but working at Bluder's right hand for the last 32 years (the last 20 as Bluder's associate head coach) suggests that she is very ready for this opportunity.
Lisa Bluder leaves Iowa with a tremendous list of accomplishments, with a few of the biggest noted below.
Bluder coached at Drake before she took over at Iowa and the Bulldogs also congratulated Bluder on her excellent career.
We'll wrap up with this video message from the Iowa women's basketball Twitter account, celebrating Bluder's incredible run at Iowa.
