"She's just baiting defenses in" - Kevin Durant lauds Caitlin Clark's tremendous run to NCAA Final Four
Kevin Durant has joined the chorus of big names praising Caitlin Clark, who has earned attention and adulation with her impressive play throughout the season and the NCAA Tournament.
During the latest episode of "The ETCs with Kevin Durant," the NBA star had some high praise for the Iowa Hawkeyes star:
"She's getting her teammates involved. They got so many shooters. I watched them play Louisville (a 97-83 win in the Elite Eight), and the way they moved the ball and played off of her was just perfect.
"They all got an opportunity to shine. ... [Clark's] advances, man! She can do a lot out there. She's making the right plays. She can draw so much attention, and she's just baiting the defense in while still making the crosscourt pass. That's just muscle memory."
.@KDTrey5 on @CaitlinClark22:
“Right now, she’s incredible.”
New episode of The ETCs drops Tuesday. 👀 https://t.co/XLbiznBq5e
Caitlin Clark's impressive run
Phoenix Suns star Kevin Duran recognizes game. It is no secret that Caitlin Clark is among the best players in college basketball. She's won three player of the year awards so far (Associated Press, Naismith and Wade Trophy) this season.
The Iowa star has been doing it at a high level for the past three years, as she has averaged at least 26.6 points per game each season.
Caitlin Clark is a three-time All-American (on the first team each of the last two seasons), the two-time Big Ten Player of the Year and the winner of the Dawn Staley Award, given to the best guard in the nation, in the previous two seasons. She led the nation in scoring the past two seasons.
The 6-foot guard has taken things to another level this year, averaging 27.3 points, 8.6 assists and 7.3 rebounds per game. Clark ranks third in the NCAA in scoring and first in assists.
She had one of the most impressive performances of her career during the Elite Eight victory over Louisville. Iowa secured a 97-83 victory behind Clark's 11th career triple-double. She finished with 41 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds and had her fingerprints all over the Hawkeyes' victory. Combining her points and assists, Clark played a role in over two-thirds of Iowa's points.
The 41-point performance was the ninth-highest scoring output in the NCAA Women's Tournament history. It is also only the 16th triple-double in tournament history, and Clark scored more points than anyone has while producing these well-rounded stats. Clark also recorded every made field goal by Iowa in the second half of their second-round win over Georgia earlier in the tournament.
As impressive as her performances have been thus far, Clark will be put to a true test as Iowa (30-6) faces off against tournament favorite and defending national champion South Carolina (36-0) in the Final Four on Friday. The Gamecocks' hard-nosed defense (coached by Dawn Staley) will provide a difficult challenge for Clark, but she has cleared every hurdle with ease thus far.
The matchup is set to take place at 9 p.m. EST on Friday night and can be seen on ESPN.