Caitlin Clark of the University of Iowa has won numerous basketball awards. Clark was awarded the 2024 Naismith National Player of the Year, broke the NCAA Tournament record for most points scored by a male or woman, and won The Athletic’s National Player of the Year award.
With Clark’s assistance, viewership of the NCAA women’s basketball final between Iowa and South Carolina reached 18.9 million, exceeding that of the men’s tournament, which peaked at 14.82 million. Clark’s contribution to increased watching of women’s basketball has given the sport fresh prominence and attention.
While Clark earned national notoriety, participants of the Drake basketball programme had the opportunity to experience and contribute to the sport’s growth. As both the Bulldogs and Hawkeyes advanced to March Madness this year, the love for women’s basketball in Iowa spreads throughout local communities.
Nicci Hays Fort has been an assistant coach for the Drake women’s basketball team since 2016. Hays Fort discussed how women’s basketball has grown in recent years.
“It’s cool to see that [for] the women and men that [have coached] women’s basketball for the last 50 years, all the fruits of their labour have come to fruition,” Hays Fort said in a statement.
Hays Fort described Clark’s heartfelt impact on the sport of women’s basketball, which she witnessed when the team faced Iowa in Carver-Hawkeye Arena on November 19.
“The doors opened one hour and a half before the game. “There were hundreds of little girls and even a few little boys surrounding the court, just wanting to take a picture with her, hoping to catch her attention and get her to come over and see them,” Hays Fort recalled.
Hays Fort expressed her hope that the popularity of women’s basketball, particularly in Iowa, will shine a focus on Drake players’ abilities.
“[Clark] has taken women’s basketball and taken it to new heights,” Hays Fort said in a statement. “It enables Katie Dinnebier, Anna Miller, and Grace Berg to thrive. They were able to get notice and notoriety.
Katie Dinnebier, a junior guard, grew raised in Des Moines and played on Clark’s Amateur Athletic Union team throughout high school.
“The shots [Clark] takes and the ways she plays the game has never been seen before,” he remarked. “Her work ethic, her dedication to the sport and also to see her advertise the sport and lift other athletes up; that’s incredible and speaks to her character.”
