2023 Women's Gulf Coast Showcase

Caitlin Clark Scores 32 As Iowa WBB Beats KSU, Wins Gulf Coast Showcase

Caitlin Clark Scores 32 As Iowa WBB Beats KSU, Wins Gulf Coast Showcase

Caitlin Clark put on a 3-point show and Iowa Women's Basketball overcame a tough Kansas State WBB team to win the 2023 Gulf Coast Showcase.

Nov 27, 2023 by Joe Harrington
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With 2:29 left to play, Kansas State Women's Basketball took a 68-67 lead on No. 5 Iowa to cap an 11- 0 run by the Wildcats. 

Then Iowa snapped back and got even with K-State this season.

Caitlin Clark nailed a 3-pointer to finish a 5-0 run and hit another with 47 seconds left in the game to give Iowa the lead for good and eventually win the 2023 Women's Gulf Coast Showcase, 77-70 on Nov. 26. 

Clark was outstanding, as usual with 32 points. But just 10 days earlier, Clark had struggled in a 65-58 loss loss to Kansas State in Iowa City. She shot 9-for-32 and just 2-of-16 from three. 

It was a different story in Estero, Florida. 

Clark was 10-of-25 from the field and made seven 3-pointers (7-for-16), including several in the third quarter that appeared to be from NBA distance. 

After hardly playing in the two fourth quarters during Iowa's run to the finals, wins over Purdue Fort Wayne and Florida Gulf Coast, Clark played 39 minutes. 

And Iowa needed all of it to beat an impressive Wildcats squad who twice rallied from double-digits to take a lead on the 2023 National Runner-ups. Shooting 50% from the field and utilizing the size from star center Ayoka Lee, who scored 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds, Kansas State never let Iowa completely pull away. 

Kansas State used a barrage of 3-pointers in the second quarter to erase Iowa's 27-15 first quarter lead. KSU outscored the Hawkeyes 23-12 in the second quarter. 

The Wildcats scored the first points of the third, briefly taking a lead before Clark took over. Iowa outscored KSU 24-16 in the third with Clark scoring eight points, including a pair of 3-point heat checks. 

Clark's 32 points was seven shy of the tournament record of 39. 

2023 Women's Gulf Coast Showcase Results

First round games: 

  • Kansas State 77, Western Kentucky 61
  • North Carolina 54, Vermont 51
  • Florida Gulf Coast 83, Delaware 68
  • Iowa 98, Purdue Fort Wayne 59

Consolation games: 

  • Western Kentucky 62, Vermont 50
  • Purdue Fort Wayne 88, Delaware 74

Semifinal games: 

  • Kansas State 63, North Carolina 56
  • Iowa 100, FGCU 62

Consolation games: 

  • Purdue Fort Wayne 90, Western Kentucky 77
  • Delaware 73, Vermont 66
  • FGCU 65, UNC 64

Championship game

  • Iowa 77, Kansas State 70

What Teams Have Won the Women's Gulf Coast Showcase?

Here are the all-time champions of the Women's Gulf Coast Showcase champions. 

  • 2013: Middle Tennessee State 
  • 2014: UConn
  • 2015: Stanford  
  • 2016: Baylor 
  • 2017: Notre Dame
  • 2018: Texas
  • 2019: Gonzaga
  • 2021: Iowa State 
  • 2022: Michigan

Has A Women's Gulf Coast Showcase Champion Won The NCAA Tournament?

Yes. UConn Women's Basketball won the 2015 NCAA Women's Tournament Championship. The Huskies won their second straight championship. But before that UConn won the Gulf Coast Showcase championship, beating College of Charleston, Vanderbilt ad Green Bay. 

When Is The 2024 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament?

Selection Sunday for the NCAA Women’s Tournament is March 17, 2024. The First Four will tip off March 20, with the Round of 64 beginning March 22. 

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