“She knew the downfall was coming” - College hoops fans react to Lisa Bluder’s retirement after Caitlin Clark’s departure from Iowa

The college basketball world saw major news break as Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball coach Lisa Bluder announced her retirement on Monday evening. One of the most accomplished coaches to never win an NCAA championship, she inked a thank you note to Hawkeye Nation.

"It has been the honor of my career to be part of the Iowa Hawkeye family, and to lead a women's basketball program filled with so many talented and remarkable young women, who have gone on to do great things in their careers and, more importantly, in their lives. There is no denying that this past season was incredible for so many reasons, and we could not have accomplished our achievements without all of you."

Some people took to social media hypothesizing that Lisa Bluder is retiring due to Caitlin Clark leaving the program.

"She knew Caitlin Clark was the peak of her career," one commenter replied.

"Lmaoo good for her. Caitlin took her to back to back championship games. Iowa would have never seen that again," another user posted.

Others used the moment to congratulate her.

"Some of you dudes in here really don't know ball, and it shows. Lisa Bluder had 22 NCAA tournament appearances with Clark, and has 889 career wins," one person replied.

"Enjoy retirement coach!" another user posted.

The move came across as shocking but seems planned as the Iowa Hawkeyes have named Jan Jensen as her successor after spending the last 20 seasons as the associate head coach under Bluder.

How long did Lisa Bluder coach for the Iowa Hawkeyes?

Lisa Bluder has become one of the major staples in this era of women's college basketball as she has been with the Iowa Hawkeyes since 2000. She led the Hawkeyes to a 533-254 record, including a 262-145 record in the Big Ten in her 24 years.

The Iowa Hawkeyes made the NCAA Tournament every season since missing the 2007 edition, as the Hawkeyes were strong contenders who were just never able to cut down the NCAA championship nets. They reached the NCAA final each of the past two seasons with Caitlin Clark, the consensus national player of the year both seasons. Clark was the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft last month by the Indiana Fever.