March Madness

As the year starts, one thing comes to mind of all the sports fanatics. March Madness. A time where competition is bred and sought after. March Madness is a time where the entire country comes together or goes head to head. Voting, betting, or even just cheering on a team, March Madness collects more viewers than the Super Bowl. As the exciting long following of college basketball games begin, there is one thing that leaves the crowds even more excited this year, the women’s teams have sold more tickets than the men’s teams this year. 

As the women take off, many people realize fast that the women’s teams have some of the best players in a long time. This year Caitlin Clark, Iowa’s starting guard, has broken records that pro athletes made while in college, such as Steph Curry and Pete Maravich. Along with Caitlin Clark being a highly watched player, there is also Angel Reese, Paige Bueckers, Kamilla Cardoso, and Juju Watkins.

Throughout the games the entire crowd had their bets on Iowa to win the entire championship. Caitlin Clark broke all the scoring records and assist records, making the entire crowd believe that Iowa would walk away with the win. Even though Iowa was leading the large crowds, South Carolina, UConn, and LSU are also bringing in the people. 

During the game between South Carolina and LSU, there was an ejection from both teams due to a fight. All the players that left the bench ended up being kicked out due to “the involvement.” Along with the fight that broke out, both the coaches had something to say. While the coach of South Carolina, Dawn Staley, came on and apologized for the team’s behavior, Kim Mulkey had a different take on the fight. Without an apology, she told the press that it was the “referees fault.” Kim Mulkey’s response got backlash from fans and LSU lost fans due to her response to the fight that broke out. 

As the games went on, LSU vs Iowa was the big game everyone looked forward to. Seeing Angel Reese going against Clark. The game went unexpected and Iowa fans were happy with the outcome of the game, Iowa going face to face against UConn. The UConn game against Iowa game brought many people and again it ended unexpectedly when Iowa went to the championship against South Carolina. 

The championship game Iowa vs South Carolina brought in the legends of basketball along with famous artists. The championship sold double the price than the men’s championship and brought in more people. The game was exciting and close. The score of Iowa and South Carolina was back and forth and tied throughout the entire game until the last half of the 4th quarter. South Carolina took the lead and won the championship after an undefeated season they held.

After the game Staley gave a speech and a shout out to Caitlin Clark about making basketball huge for girls. Staley and the team gave credit to the other team and were very sportsmanlike to the other team, making fans like them even more due to the kindness they showed to the other team.