Getty Image/Matthew Holst
All eyes were on women’s basketball sensation Caitlin Clark and her Iowa Hawkeyes teammates on Monday night as they took on eighth-seeded West Virginia with a trip to the Sweet 16 on the line.
Normally, the talk surrounds the exceptional play of the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer, Caitlin Clark. But, in a close, low-scoring contest, the talk is centering on what many considered to be uneven refereeing by the crew in Iowa City Monday night en route to a 64-54 Iowa win.
The game was tied at 52 with just under three minutes remaining, before an Iowa 12-2 run, mostly at the foul line. That was part of a free throw attempt disparity of 30-5. The highest seed in each 4-team sub-regional hosts in the NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament, so some home court calls are to be expected. But, a 30-5 differential is pretty crazy.
Fans watching the game were quick to point out that Iowa seemed to get all the calls.
If Iowa played the Lakers who would get more calls?
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) March 26, 2024
Iowa: 30 free throws shot, 11 fouls committed
West Virginia: 5 free throws shot, 27 fouls called on them
The refs understood the assignment to advance Caitlin Clark at all costs ✅ pic.twitter.com/EMxMjXic80
— Ohio’s Tate (@BarstoolTate) March 26, 2024
This is absurd. Absolutely infuriating. I feel for the West Virginia team. They’ve played a better game than Iowa and they’re not going to get rewarded at all. Hope these refs don’t advance.
— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) March 26, 2024
Unfortunate for West Virginia that they had to beat iowa and the refs tonight.
— Blake Amrhein (@Blakeamrhein) March 26, 2024
Make no mistake, West Virginia played a physical brand of basketball. But, the refereeing was definitely suspect at times.
Now, Iowa will advance to the Sweet 16 in Albany next weekend. They will play fifth-seeded Colorado, while LSU and UCLA are the other regional semifinal. If Iowa and LSU both advance, it will be a rematch of last year’s highly contested and controversial national title game featuring the two teams.
Caitlin Clark overcame a cold shooting night to score 32 points and grab rebounds. West Virginia did a nice job limiting her playmaking capabilities, as she had just three assists.