Behind another epic Caitlin Clark performance, the Iowa Hawkeyes defeated the previously unbeaten South Carolina Gamecocks in the 2023 Women’s Final Four on Friday night.
Now, instead of defending their championship, Dawn Staley’s team will be watching Iowa coach Lisa Bluder attempt to out-duel LSU’s Kim Mulkey on the 2023 Women’s Tournament’s biggest stage.
During her post-game press conference, Staley seemingly took a shot at Bluder over comments she made leading into that game.
“We’re not bar fighters. We’re not thugs. We’re not monkeys. We’re not street fighters,” Staley said Friday night. “This team exemplifies how you need to approach basketball on the court and off the court. And I do think that that’s sometimes brought into the game, and it hurts.”
She seemed to be referencing Bluder’s comments made last week, saying that she was told that trying to rebound against the Gamecocks was like “going to a bar fight.”
Bluder was asked for her reaction to Staley’s comments afterward and the Hawkeye’s head coach downplayed their significance.
“If you know me, I speak tongue in cheek a lot, and I was saying an analogy of you’ve got to rebound like you’re in a bar fight,” Bluder said. “That’s all. It doesn’t say who’s fighting, right? But that’s fine. I’ve never been in a bar fight, by the way.”
It might be a little interesting if Iowa and South Carolina meet again next season in the NCAA Tournament.
[Fox News]
