"She knows how to coach": Former SB champ lauds South Carolina HC Dawn Staley's plans to limit Caitlin Clark following 18-point first quarter

Former Super Bowl champion Keyshawn Johnson was impressed with South Carolina's defense against Caitlin Clark and Iowa in the national championship game on Sunday afternoon.

Clark scored 18 points in the first quarter as Iowa had the lead, but the Gamecocks changed their defense to limit the NCAA's all-time leading scorer.

Coach Dawn Staley and South Carolina weren't going to allow Clark to beat them, which Johnson lauded in Monday's episode of FS1's "Undisputed."

"That is adjustments, that is Dawn Staley and that's the defensive staff putting the clampers on and saying, 'hey, you got your 18 in your first quarter, we are not going to allow you the rest of the game to do these sort of things,'" Johnson said.

"She missed shots, she missed open shots, but they were crowding her, they were passing her off, they were making the necessary adjustments and harassing her...

"Dawn Staley, let's face it, she knows how to coach, she's not going to allow the things to happen against LSU, which Kim Mulkey did, leaving this particular individual and you got her. You take care of her even though she's cooking for 40-plus points.

"When you make these adjustments, this is basically what happened, they did a great job defensively, and partly she missed some shots and they never got back into a rhythm."

In the end, Clark finished with 30 points, but she only had 12 in the final three quarters as South Carolina won 87-75 to win the national title.

Caitlin Clark has no regrets over Iowa career

With Iowa losing the national championship game for the second straight season, Caitlin Clark will finish her college career with zero national titles.

But, despite never winning a national championship, Clark says she has no regrets about her career.

"Whether it's the way the fans have supported me, the way I've been able to represent my state where I grew up, my family being at every single game -- there's not a regret in my mind of how things went," Clark said, via ESPN. "I'll be able to sleep every night even though I never won a national championship.

"I don't sit and sulk about the things that never happened. My mom always taught me, 'Keep your head high, be proud of everything that you've accomplished.' And, you know, I think I'm so hungry for a lot more, too."

Clark has declared for the WNBA draft and is projected to be the first overall pick by the Indiana Fever.