"They need Caitlin Clark to get to the Final Four": Veteran podcaster accuses NCAA of favoring Iowa star with unwarranted foul calls

Caitlin Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes have advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament following victories in the first two rounds. Clark's exceptional performances have been pivotal to Iowa's success, but allegations of biased officiating have surfaced.

Veteran podcaster Bill Simmons accused the NCAA refs of favoring No. 1 Iowa by making dubious foul calls in the school's games. During Thursday's episode of his podcast, Simmons highlighted questionable calls in Iowa's Round of 32 win against West Virginia.

He noted his wife's reaction to replays of certain fouls, expressing disbelief at the decisions made by the referees. Simmons suggested a potential bias in officiating, implying a concerted effort:

“My wife, who never watches basketball with me, was actually watching the last five minutes, and they were showing a replay of a couple of fouls, and she had no opinion on any of this stuff and she’s like, ‘Oh my God, that wasn’t a foul ... and I was just like well, they need Caitlin to get to the Final Four.”

Simmons expressed skepticism about the Hawkeyes' championship potential, citing their narrow victory over West Virginia and their struggle against Holy Cross:

“They are not winning the title, they’re not good enough. They’re like barely beating West Virginia. Like Holy Cross was in the game against them for 15 minutes before we stopped getting calls.”

Simmons isn't the only one who thought officiating against the Mountaineers was bad. NBA star Damian Lillard took to X to share his thoughts:

"I feel like West Virginia women’s team getting did bad by these refs."

Caitlin Clark bids farewell to Carver-Hawkeye arena as WNBA draft looms

Caitlin Clark played he­r final game at home for Iowa and score­d 32 points. The All-American point guard will enter the­ 2024 WNBA Draft at the end of the season. She is proje­cted as Indiana Fever's No. 1 pick.

Clark shared photos on Instagram as she emotionally said goodbye.

“Goodbye to my forever favorite arena," Caitlin Clark wrote. "The countless memories I have in this place will be cherished forever. See you in Albany Hawk fans.”

The Hawkeyes' hard-fought victory against the Mountaineers saw them advance to the Sweet 16, where they will face No. 5 seed Colorado. A potential rematch against last year's national champions, LSU, looms if they overcome No. 2 seed UCLA.