Tom Krasovic: Caitlin Clark, Paige Bueckers will give women's basketball another ratings winner Friday
Clark and Bueckers reward basketball lovers. In contrast to the men's game, the best players stay in college several years. The NCAA Tournament's national semifinals will feature Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers from Connecticut and Iowa, potentially setting another ratings record for women’s college basketball. The game will be played between the teams, which both players performed well in the quarterfinals. Former San Diego State coach Beth Burns, one of the sport's defensive experts, said both players are the type of players that they’re going to get. The 6 p.m. PDT game will feature a strong performance from both players, with Clark accounting for 71 percent of Iowa's points against LSU. The South Carolina-North Carolina game will also feature San Diego County alum Te-Hina Paopao, marking her first Final Four appearance.
Published : a month ago by Tom Krasovic in Sports
Iowa’s Caitlin Clark looks on during a news conference announcing the AP NCAA Women’s Coach and Player of the Year on Thursday.
Little wonder Friday’s telecast featuring Caitlin Clark of Iowa and Paige Bueckers of Connecticut in the NCAA Tournament’s national semifinals could set another ratings record for women’s college basketball, four days after 12.3 million viewers of ESPN’s telecast saw Clark lead Iowa past defending-champion LSU.
Each senior shone in Monday’s quarterfinals, while leading her team to Cleveland.
Good luck to the Hawkeyes and Huskies who’ll try to defend either tall guard, both 22 years old, during the 6 p.m. PDT game.
“You can double them, you can triple them,” former San Diego State coach Beth Burns, the associate head coach at USC and one of the sport’s defensive experts, said by phone Thursday. “You can do what you want, but they’re both the kind of players that, they’re gonna get you. Somehow, they’re gonna get you.”
San Diego County will be represented in the 4 p.m. PDT semifinal game by Oceanside’s Te-Hina Paopao, who’ll run the point for unbeaten South Carolina against guard-driven North Carolina State. The game will mark the La Jolla Country Day alum’s first Final Four appearance in a career that took her to two quarterfinals with Oregon.
“I’ve known her since about fifth grade — love her, love her family,” Burns said. “Tried to recruit her. We had our hat in the ring. She picked the wrong USC, but I’m still cheering for her.
“She’s extremely talented and a wonderful young lady,” the coach added. “She’s a leader. She runs the team. San Diego should be very proud.”
For all the attention Clark and Bueckers will command, it’s doubtful either will spend many minutes trying to defend the other, Burns said, as neither team may be willing to risk losing its best player to fouls.
Injuries to several teammates make it more important Bueckers avoids foul trouble. Iowa will again ask a lot of Clark, whose buckets and assists accounted for 71 percent of the team’s points against LSU.
Burns said altitude will be a factor — the stars’, not Cleveland’s.
“Everything in basketball is predicated on vision,” Burns said. “What you can’t see, you can’t do.”
LSU tried to defend the 6-foot Clark with a 5-foot-7 guard, only to see Clark sink many of her nine 3-point shots and set up other points.
Where Clark boasts shooting range that Burns described as “insane,” the 5-11 Bueckers may defend slightly better.
“She’s like a point forward,” Burns said. “She can pass the ball. She can score the ball. She’s their best defender.”
Who will win? Keep an eye on the supporting casts, too.
UConn reserve forward Ice Brady attended Cathedral Catholic High School, and is the only player on the Huskies’ roster from the western United States. She’s averaging 4.4 points and 3.3 rebounds in 17.5 minutes per game.
“You’re not going to control or contain Caitlin Clark or Paige Bueckers — you’re not,” said Burns, who saw Bueckers go for 28 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, three steals and two blocks in third-seeded Connecticut’s 80-73 win Monday over No. 1-seeded USC in Portland. “What you have to do is control everybody else. The players that you think you can control.”
Clark’s wizardry on the court is equating to TV ratings gold.
The Iowa-LSU telecast was the most-watched men’s or women’s college basketball game ever on ESPN, more than doubling the prior largest audience. Also, per the network, it outdrew all but one of the five games in last year’s NBA Finals, along with the clinching game of last year’s World Series (11.48 million).
Advantaging the women’s college game appeal vis a vis the men’s college game are the eligibility rules of basketball’s respective top professional leagues, resulting in pro-caliber women such as Clark and Buecker playing college ball longer than pro-caliber men. Where U.S. players declaring for the NBA must be 19 years old, the WNBA requires NCAA players to be 22 in the calendar year of the draft.
“You’re able to build a real iconic legacy at a program,” said the NBA star, who was on the cusp of graduating from his Akron, Ohio high school when he was drafted into the league in 2003.
“And that’s what we all love about it,” James said. “That’s what we all love. We love the girls’ game because of that moment you actually get to see those girls (build to). That makes the girl’s Final Four and the Elite Eight so great. Yeah, Iowa was a great team; Caitlin Clark is the reason we tuned in. You’re going to watch Purdue (in Saturday’s men’s semifinals) because of (late-developing senior) Zach Edey, because he’s a great player. … Players, depending who they are, will drive the attention when it comes to viewership.”
Bueckers no doubt would’ve been drafted three years ago, if the WNBA allowed it and she wanted to turn pro.
As a freshman she had earned the James Naismith and John Wooden awards for national player of the year by leading the Huskies in points, assists, steals and field-goal percentage. The Minnesotan sank three-point shots at a stunning rate — 46.4 percent.
A knee injury would sideline Bueckers for 19 games as a sophomore. An ACL tear prevented her from playing as a junior.
Having avoided serious injury, Clark has appeared in 137 collegiate games and become the sport’s leading scorer. The only college player to lead her conference in scoring and assists across four seasons, she has averaged 28.5 points per game since choosing to stay in Iowa for college. She has won this year’s Naismith and stands to collect the Wooden award.
By now, basketball lovers don’t need reminders to tune in.
Topics: Basketball, Sports Figures