"That workload finally caught up with her": 3x Super Bowl champ points out potential reason behind Caitlin Clark's Iowa's loss to South Carolina

Caitlin Clark suffered her second national championship game loss on Sunday after Iowa fell 87-75 to undefeated South Carolina at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio. The star point guard ended her illustrious college career without a national championship.

Following the game, television personality Shannon Sharpe offered his opinion on why the Hawkeyes lost the game to the Gamecocks. The Pro Football Hall of Famer believes Clark's extensive workload throughout the season eventually took a toll on her.

“Lady Gamecocks wore down C. Clark. Primary defender R. Johnson made it extremely tough on every possession and it wore Clark down. Caitlin carries a heavy load, scores and facilitates for everyone else for at least 40 minutes a night. I believe that workload finally caught up with her," Sharpe wrote on X/Twitter.

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How much playing time did Caitlin Clark have in 2023-24?

Caitlin Clark played 39 games for Iowa during the 2023-24 season and started all of them. The point guard was on the court for a total of 1,359 minutes throughout the season, averaging 34.8 minutes per game as the Hawkeyes went all the way to the national title game.

Clark played more minutes in the just-concluded season than any other year at Iowa. She played 1307 minutes in 38 games in 2022-23, 1,148 minutes in 32 games in 2021-2022, and 1,020 minutes in 30 games in the 2020-21 season, showcasing consistency throughout.

However, the point guard averaged 34.4 minutes per game in 2022-23, 35.9 minutes per game in 2021-22, and 34.0 per game in 2020-21. This showcases that Clark has pretty much done the same range on the court throughout her career in Iowa. Nonetheless, this doesn't discard Shannon Sharpe’s claim of wearing down.

Caitlin Clark had a good game nonetheless

Despite the defensive plan South Carolina had for Caitlin Clark on Sunday and the wearing down, as claimed by Shannon Sharpe, the Hawkeyes star still had a great game at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.

Clark recorded 30 points in the game, more than any other player. She also added eight assists and five rebounds. Nonetheless, her superb performance was not enough to earn the Hawkeyes the coveted national championship title against the red-hot Gamecocks.

Just like last year, the point guard once again missed out on the NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player after ending up on the losing side. The award went to South Carolina's Kamilla Cardoso.