When Dawn Staley named 1 Iowa player who “killed” South Carolina in Caitlin Clark’s 41 point game: “We didn’t factor in her being productive”

South Carolina coach Dawn Staley believed her team could handle Caitlin Clark and Iowa in the 2023 NCAA Final Four. However, the three-time national champion coach was left frustrated after another Hawkeye star put on a solid performance against the Gamecocks.

Clark dropped a game-high 41 points to lead Iowa to a 77-73 victory, clinching the Hawkeyes' first national championship game berth since 1994. But Staley did not expect a significant impact from 6-foot-3 big Monika Czinano, who finished with 18 points and 3 rebounds.

During her appearance on the Dan Patrick Show in March 2024, Dawn Staley admitted that the Gamecocks failed to account for Czinano when devising their game plan, which ultimately proved to be a costly oversight.

"Caitlin Clark did exactly what she was supposed to do in our game plan. Now, who killed us is — and I'm probably going to jack up her name — is Czinano, the big," Staley said (11:55).

"I mean, she had about 18 points, and we just didn’t factor in her being that productive against us. And then Aliyah Boston got in a little bit of foul trouble. Playing without her for any significant time really hurts our basketball team."

Zia Cooke led the Gamecocks with 24 points and 8 rebounds, while Aliyah Boston added 8 points and 10 rebounds. However, South Carolina's defense struggled to contain the duo of Clark and Czinano, who combined for 59 points in the upset victory for Iowa.

Dawn Staley's South Carolina restricted Caitlin Clark in the rematch to win the national title

The Gamecocks would get their revenge against Iowa in the 2024 national championship game, defeating the Hawkeyes 87-75.

This time Dawn Staley's team was better prepared to slow down Caitlin Clark, limiting the Naismith College Player of the Year to just 30 points on 10-of-28 shooting.

South Carolina's defense also did a better job containing other Iowa threats, including Hannah Stuelke, who was held to just 11 points, a significant drop-off from her 23-point performance in the Final Four against UConn.

Meanwhile, for the Gamecocks, Kamilla Cardoso dominated the interior with a double-double of 15 points and 17 rebounds, while Chloe Kitts also provided a big lift with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Freshman Tessa Johnson delivered a team-high 19 points off the bench.

Dawn Staley's squad secured the program's third NCAA national championship title, while Caitlin Clark's brilliant individual season ended in disappointment as she was unable to lead Iowa to the promised land in her final collegiate campaign.