5 reasons why Caitlin Clark's Iowa are clear favorites to win 2024 NCAA tournament

Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes have a chance to win their first ever NCAA Tournament championship. With Clark declaring for the WNBA draft, this could be Iowa's best chance at winning it all for a while.

Even though the Hawkeyes are not the overall number one seed in the tournament, they are considered a heavy favorite to win the title. We will look at five reasons why Caitlin Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes are considered clear favorites to hoist the trophy at the conclusion of March Madness.

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Five reasons why Caitlin Clark's Iowa are clear favorites to win the 2024 NCAA Tournament

#1. Offensive production

The Iowa Hawkeyes are the top-rated offense in the country. They average an NCAA-high 92.8 points per game. They also rank in the top two in scoring, but she is also a gifted distributor, leading the nation in assists with 8.9 per game.

Clark has four games this season in which she scored 40 or more points. She has shown no signs of slowing down as her Hawkeyes are set to face Holy Cross in the first round of the tournament.

#2. Depth

The fact that Caitlin Clark lead the Hawkeyes in both assists and scoring this season shows the depth Iowa has behind Clark as well. Iowa has two other players averaging double-figure scoring this season.

Sophomore forward Hannah Stuelke averages 14.6 points per game along with 6.8 rebounds. She has multiple games with over 20 points, including a 47-point outing in a 119-93 victory over Penn State earlier this season.

Kate Martin is the other Hawkeye averaging double-digit scoring, with 12.9 points per game. Her highest scoring output this season was in a 113-90 win over Drake in November when she tallied 25 points.

#3. Competition

Iowa's side of the bracket contains only two teams that were able to beat them earlier in the season. It shouldn't be too much of a challenge for Caitlin Clark and Iowa to get past No. 16 seed Holy Cross in the opening round of the tournament.

From that point, they could face Kansas State, who beat the Hawkeyes 65-58 in November. But the Hawkeyes fired back and defeated the Wildcats 77-70 in their second meeting 10 days later.

Iowa's next biggest challenge would be No. 2 seed Ohio State, who upset the Hawkeyes in their overtime matchup in January. The Buckeyes are on the complete opposite end of the bracket, meaning the two teams wouldn't meet until the Final Four, should they both make it that far.

#4. Ability to beat good teams

Iowa has shown all season long that they have the ability to beat the other top teams in women's college basketball. They already have wins this season over No. 4 seed Virginia Tech, No. 5 seed Kansas State, No. 4 seed Indiana, No. 2 seed Ohio State and No. 6 seed Nebraska.

Clark has led the Hawkeyes in scoring and assists in all of these games, and it seems her game is only elevated when in the spotlight. Iowa should again be able to rally behind her and defeat more of the nation's top teams to win the title.

#5. Experience

Iowa has 10 returning players from last season, meaning these players will not have many surprises in terms of what to expect during March Madness. Veteran leadership can be extremely valuable in this type of tournament with such a quick turnaround after each game.

All five of Iowa's top five scorers are returning players from last season. The chemistry and experience these players have with each other will be a huge advantage for Caitlin Clark and the Hawkeyes during their 2024 March Madness run.