Lisa Bluder walked into a packed room last month, with media members crammed shoulder-to-shoulder as if they were on the subway during rush hour, and couldn’t help but grin. The winningest coach in Big Ten women’s basketball history has experienced just about everything in her 24 seasons at Iowa, especially over the past four with Caitlin Clark rewriting the record book while becoming a household name.
“This is the first time I’ve ever been happy in this press room, so it feels pretty good,” Bluder said with a smile.
In a vacuum, the moment was just another victory for an elite Hawkeyes group that advanced to the national championship game in 2023 and ended this regular season ranked No.