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Caitlin Clark put the Iowa Hawkeyes on the women's basketball map. She's heading back to the same venue where she repeatedly made history, as the Indiana Fever will play their first preseason game on Sunday. They will face the Brazilian National Team at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City.
When asked about the homecoming, Clark admitted being excited. However, she warned her teammates not to expect anything fancy at the arena.
“I’m excited, it should be fun," Clark said during Wednesday's media availability. "I can’t believe it’s already here. I warned everybody there’s no air conditioning in Carver-Hawkeye. We’ll see how it goes, might be a little toasty.”
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While she wasn't able to lead Iowa to the national championship, Clark's Hawkeyes made it to back-to-back national title games.
She became the all-time leading scorer in NCAA Division I history (both for men's and women's) with 3,951 points. Clark also set marks for the most career 3-pointers (548) and most points in a single season (1,234).
The Hawkeyes retired her jersey during the game against USC in February.
Caitlin Clark wanted to bulk up in the offseason
Caitlin Clark will likely enjoy some home cooking when the Indiana Fever play at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Sunday, but she also has to focus on what's to come.
When asked about her points of emphasis in the offseason, Clark acknowledged that she knew she had to hit the gym and bulk up to withstand the physicality of the WNBA.
“That was my biggest focus in the offseason, just trying to get stronger and really working on that,” Clark said to reporters after Monday's practice.
Fans have noticed her bigger arms in multiple viral pics this offseason, and Clark can already tell the difference from her rookie season:
“I knew (strength) was going to be a huge part of it," Clark said. "It’s going to help me offensively, it’s going to help me defensively. It’s going to help me not get as tired throughout games,” she continued. “Even these two practices, I can certainly feel it.”
Clark's WNBA career started with a bang, but the bar will continue to be high for a player of her caliber, and with the moves the Fever made this offseason, it could be championship-or-bust for the star guard and her team.
