Iowa women’s basketball’s roster stability a rarity in college sports

IOWA CITY — Within the ultimate stand of a gritty, bodily battle towards West Virginia, Iowa’s group on the ground was the identical 5 that began the sport.

Caitlin Clark. Kate Martin. Gabbie Marshall. Hannah Stuelke. And Sydney Affolter.

That was the 5 that put bookends on Iowa’s 64-54 victory over West Virginia in a raucous surroundings at Carver-Hawkeye Area on Monday. It’s the group that helped Iowa earn a spot within the Candy 16 for the third time within the final 4 years.

However take a step additional again.

Martin has been part of faculty basketball since 2018. Marshall since 2019. Clark since 2020. Affolter since 2021. Stuelke since 2022.

All informed, these 5 gamers have mixed for greater than 600 appearances on the faculty degree.

And the frequent thread?

Each single a type of video games has been performed for Iowa.

This speaks to Iowa’s present roster as an entire.

Solely two of Iowa’s gamers this season got here from different applications. One being Molly Davis (Central Michigan), who didn’t play Monday — and hasn’t since struggling an damage within the regular-season finale towards Ohio State. The opposite is Kylie Feuerbach (Iowa State).

Aside from these two, everybody on the Hawkeyes’ roster started their careers at Iowa.

This was once the norm. Gamers sticking round one spot for his or her faculty careers. Nevertheless it isn’t anymore.

The switch portal has modified faculty athletics. Selecting a college has develop into much less of a multi-year dedication and extra of a one-year contract. Faculty sports activities is an more and more nomadic establishment.

Iowa is an outlier to that. The Hawkeyes appeal to and retain expertise, which is troublesome to do as of late.

And most essential: Coach Lisa Bluder’s group is producing outcomes.

Iowa is now 31-4 this season. It captured a Large Ten Match championship. It earned a No. 1 seed within the NCAA Match for simply the third time in program historical past.

“We don’t actually have a must deliver lots of people in as a result of we don’t have many individuals depart,” stated Caitlin Clark. “As a result of they love this place and so they realize it’s not like this all over the place. I do know lots of people say that however, it’s merely not.”

Iowa had simply 4 gamers rating on Monday. Clark had a game-high 32. Affolter had 13. Stuelke put up 12. Martin added seven.

All of these gamers began their faculty careers at Iowa, and so they’re nonetheless right here.

The make-up of West Virginia’s roster is extra of what you’d anticipate within the fashionable faculty sports activities panorama.

All however one of many Mountaineer gamers to attain in Monday’s contest got here from different applications. Kyah Watson, who had 13 factors, transferred from South Dakota. Jayla Hemingway, who had 10, got here from Mississippi State. Tirzah Moore, who added eight, beforehand attended Oral Roberts.

And so forth.

This isn’t to say that a technique of approaching roster-building is the fitting method. It’s doable to take pleasure in main success by being closely reliant on the switch portal. It’s also doable, as Iowa has proven, to seek out it by investing in what’s already in this system.

“I’d fairly watch a child for a very long time, get to know her, discuss to them on the telephone,” Iowa affiliate head coach Jan Jensen stated on Sunday. “And in the event that they consider in us, I wish to consider in them. And actually, actually attempt to develop them.”

“That’s our philosophy if we are able to,” Jensen continued. “I believe it’s the best way a group tradition is constructed finest. However we’ll go to the portal if there are wants. To fill a niche. However I don’t ever envision us utilizing the portal to construct the group.”

It helps when you’ve gotten a megastar in Clark who has been so invested in this system. And when you’ve gotten mainstays like Martin and Marshall, who each elected to make the most of one other season of faculty eligibility fairly than transfer on with their lives after this system.

However Affolter may be the perfect instance of how Iowa’s strategy has paid off.

Getting into this season, Affolter had appeared in 56 video games at Iowa, none of which had been begins, and averaged 2.4 factors per recreation. However this season, she is averaging a career-high in factors (7.9), rebounds (6.6) and assists (2.3) per recreation. Affolter has began each recreation since Davis went down with an damage, scoring in double-figures in 4 of these 5 contests.

On Monday, she made Iowa’s solely area purpose within the fourth quarter: an and-one layup that gave the Hawkeyes the lead with just a little greater than two minutes remaining.

“I believe now in faculty, it is really easy to hit the switch portal,” Affolter stated Sunday. “However I at all times assume that the grass won’t at all times be greener elsewhere. Like you possibly can go elsewhere and have the identical state of affairs or worse or not (be) on an awesome group. However I really like these women, I really like these coaches. I actually trusted the method and I knew my time was coming. And I used to be going to be prepared for it.”

As Iowa continues to chase a nationwide title this season, a purpose that’s nonetheless a couple of steps away, it’s price appreciating the soundness that Iowa demonstrates regardless of an evolving panorama.