Iowa Hawkeyes star Caitlin Clark repeats as Naismith Player of the Year

This year has included record-breaking numbers in viewership and a exceptional rise in assistance for females’s basketball. Amid it all, Caitlin Clark and Cameron Brink, along with head coach Dawn Staley, were acknowledged by the Atlanta Tipoff Club for their achievements this season.

During the press conference in Cleveland on Wednesday, the Iowa superstar was when onceagain pronounced the winner of the Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy, while South Carolina’s Dawn Staley was called the 2024 Werner Ladder Women’s Coach of the Year for the 2nd successive year and the 4th time in the last 5 years. Additionally, Stanford’s Cameron Brink made the Naismith’s Women’s Defensive Player of the Year award following her exceptional senior season.

“The Naismith Awards signify the greatest level of quality in college basketball. I extend our congratulations to Caitlin, Dawn, and Cameron for these well-deserved honors,” stated Eric Oberman, President of the Atlanta Tipoff Club. Their continued exceptional efficiencies throughout the years and this season are genuinely impressive, and we take terrific pride in acknowledging their remarkable accomplishments.”

With the current honor, Clark endedupbeing the 8th females’s gamer to win the award in successive seasons and the 10th total to make the award several times. It likewise significant the 3rd time in the last 6 seasons that an Iowa gamer has won the award, as Megan Gustafson was called the winner in2019 Iowa coach Lisa Bluder won that season’s Werner Ladder Coach of the Year award and was likewise a finalist for this year’s award alongwith Stanford’s Tara VanDerveer (the sport’s winningest coach) and Southern California’s Lindsay Gottlieb.

“To be a two-time recipient of the Naismith Trophy is really humbling,” stated Clark upon getting the award. “Being picked as this season’s honoree is genuinely unique with the number of skilled and competent gamers throughout the nation. I desire thank my household, coaches, and colleagues who assisted me get to this point.”

Clark’s nationwide Player of the Year acknowledgment comes in the middle of her amazing senior project that is still in movement. The three-time Big Ten Player of the Year has led Iowa to 3 successive conference champions for the veryfirst time in program history en path to back-to-back Final Four looks. While endingupbeing the NCAA all-time prominent scorer earlier this season with 3,900 points heading into the weekend, Clark likewise leads the country in scoring (32.0) and helps (9.0) per videogame and getsin the Final Four with an NCAA single-season scoring record of 1,183 points.

“On behalf of Jersey Mike’s, I praise Caitlin for her well-deserved recommendation as the 2024 Jersey Mike’s Naismith Women’s Player of the Year,” stated Jeff Hemschoot, Jersey Mike’s Vice President of Marketing, throughout the press conference on Wednesday. “Her efficiency throughout the season hasactually mesmerized audiences, and her accomplishment amongst such powerful finalists highlights the extraordinary quality of her basketball expertise and the impressive nature of her season.”

Meanwhile, Dawn Staley endedupbeing the veryfirst coach in award history to win the Werner Ladder Women’s Coach of the Year in 3 successive seasons. Staley, who was called SEC Coach of the Year for the seventh time in her profession, led the Gamecocks into the Final Four unbeaten for the 2nd successive season.

“Being called the Werner Ladder Naismith Coach of the Year is constantly an honor and constantly the work of every coach, every individual on our personnel,” stated Staley throughout the press conference. “When we veryfirst brought this group together last summerseason, I puton’t think any of our personnel would haveactually anticipated the position this specific group of young ladies have put us in this week. But we all stuck with it; we adjusted to what our gamers were capable of at each action in their advancement. And the outcome hasactually been one of the most enjoyable seasons I’ve had in my training profession, and I credit our gamers for that, for revealing us that there’s more than one course towards a objective.”

“Werner takes pride in acknowledging Coach Staley’s remarkable accomplishments, presenting her with the Werner Ladder Naismith Women’s Coach of the Year award for the 4th time in 5 years,” stated Stacy Gardella, Head of Global Marketing Technology & Operations at WernerCo. “Her constant quality mirrors her remarkable training knowledge. We extend our sincere congratulations to her and all the differentiated finalists for their impressive seasons.”

In being called the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year, Cameron Brink endedupbeing the veryfirst Cardinal in program history to win the prominent award. The Pac-12 Player and Defensive Player of the Year led the country in obstructs (3.6 bpg) and is 3rd in rebounding at 11.9 per videogame. According to the press release, she likewise endedupbeing the veryfirst college gamer with 500 points, 300 rebounds and 100 obstructs in successive seasons consideringthat Breanna Stewart did so from 2014-16.

“It’s an unbelievable honor to be called the 2024 Naismith Defensive Player of the Year,” stated Brink. “It might be an private award, however it’s a testimony to all the individuals who have put into me, not just this season however throughout my profession at Stanford – my household, coaches, colleagues, and buddies. I wouldn’t be where I am without them, and I am exceptionally grateful for all their love and assistance.”

While the Naismith Awards serve as a possibility to acknowledge and applaud the accomplishments of the concurrent season, this year’s action in females’s college basketball isn’t over simply . Dawn Staley is lookingfor her 3rd nationwide title with South Carolina as the group heads into its Final Four videogame versus North Carolina State on Friday. Meanwhile, on the other side of the bracket, Clark and the Hawkeyes are making back-to-back journeys to the Final Four with hopes of avenging their loss to LSU in the champion videogame last year. But veryfirst, Iowa will have to get through UConn and Paige Bueckers, who was likewise a finalist for the 2024 Naismith Player of the Year Award.