Women’s basketball season is upon us, and nothing signals that more that team media day at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The team is full of talent and excited to get back on the court to play in front of their fans at Carver for the first time in what feels like forever.
“I can't wait to play in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Our freshmen have already played a lot of basketball and not once in front of a Carver Arena crowd. I can't wait until they can walk out of that tunnel or run out of that tunnel on game day and feel the environment,” said Coach Lisa Bluder as she addressed the media.
Coach Lisa Bluder Quick Hits
Coach Bluder was very complimentary of Kate Martin’s game and how much she has improved since last year. She hit on the fact that Kate is starting to become a better perimeter shooter, while on the opposite side of the court she has a lot of versatility as a defender.
“Kate (Martin) may be the most improved starter that returns to our basketball team…Kate is one of the best leaders that I’ve ever been around, and that’s quite a few years.”
Tomi Taiwo, who will at times to point guard at times to spell Caitlin Clark has made a significant jump from last season, as has Logan Cook who will help back up Monika Czinano at the center spot.
“Returners Tomi Taiwo and Logan Cook have made significant jumps this summer and will bring plenty of experience as seniors to our team.”
The injury to Sharon Goodman has opened up a bit of competition for who backs up Monika Czinano at center. Coach Bluder mentioned that Logan Cook has made some strides and her defense may put her ahead of Freshman Addison O’Grady right now. Both should see minutes behind Czinano this year.
“Right now, Logan (Cook) is a little bit more ahead of the curve just because of, again, her experience….you may not notice her all the time, but sometimes that's a good thing. I mean, we have enough offense that we don't have to have her be an offensive threat. We just need her to go in there and play great defense, rebound and not make mistakes.”
Coach Bluder reiterated what she said this summer, saying that defensive improvement is a big key for them to have a chance to reach their goals for this season. Both players and coaches mentioned that some practices this summer were focused solely on defense.
“We have a pretty good recipe for offensive success, but as you know, our defense needs to improve, and that's been a point of emphasis since we started our workouts in the summer. Rebounding and defense need to improve.”
Coach Bluder on the strength of the Big Ten as a conference.
“I've said that it's easier to make the Sweet 16 than it is to win the Big Ten championship. I mean, that speaks volumes.”
While Caitlin Clark led the nation in assists last season, she had a tendency to turn the ball over at times. Coach Bluder addressed how Caitlin can cut down on turnovers and still be aggressive.
“You know, we play at a high rate of speed, too, and when you play at a high rate of speed, there are going to be a few more turnovers. But I think Caitlin is starting to understand that maybe not to take quite as many risks in transition as she did earlier on.”
Player Interview Quick Hits
Caitlin Clark on feeding off the energy of a crowd – “Oh yeah for sure. Have you watched me in high school?...It’s definitely something I feed off of. Even if they are booing against me, I feed off that too.
Caitlin Clark on individual improvements over the offseason- “I think defensively I have focused in on that area…really caring about that area. I think offensively, just refining a lot of different skills. Super comfortable going to my left using my step back that way, so working more on the right side of that…attacking using my left hand, but other than that just creating space to get the ball back…using different technics to get the ball back and get myself open.
Caitlin Clark on Kylie Feuerbach – “Kylie is super athletic. I think especially defensively for us she is going to be huge. She is going to distract people with her arms, knows the game super well and reads angles super well…She is going to find her role and she is going to do it super well.”
Caitlin Clark on Hy-Vee Partnership – “Pretty awesome…I think Hy-Vee is really the perfect match for me…They are going to respect my time of basketball, but they also see me continuing on from here and trying to be in the WNBA, be an Olympian…I think it’s just the perfect match. We share a lot of the same common values.”
Kylie Feuerbach on her transition from ISU to Iowa – “The coaches have been really helpful with transitioning. The team, there are great leaders on this team, and they all have helped me out a lot with just processing everything.”
Monika Czinano on defense and rebounding focus being a key to the season – “Oh yeah they go hand in hand. Defensive rebounding for sure. Just making sure the opposing team doesn’t have as many possessions is going to be such a crucial part.”
Monika Czinano on teammates holding other teammates accountable – “We all are so close and able to talk to each other about anything and that includes some of the bad things…I big emphasis this year is to hold each other accountable. Caitlin is going to tell me when I mess up or if I can do something better…I’m also going to do the same thing back to her and that builds great comradery and great friendships.”
A lot more is still to come with the Iowa WBB season preview set to come out next week prior to the exhibition season-opener vs Truman State on Thursday.
