The LSU Tigers became the third number 3 seed to win the championship, and the first in 16 years.
The LSU Tigers women’s basketball team captured the 2023 NCAA national championship with a 102-85 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. It was a historic feat for LSU, having won its first ever NCAA crown on Monday. The Tigers’ dominant title-clinching performance may have been a surprise to some considering the momentum that the Hawkeyes had coming into the last dance.
LSU fought fire with fire as they outscored the best offense in the women’s game, resulting in a finals record 102 points. The biggest hero for the champs was guard Jasmine Carson who went off for 22 points after just putting up a total of 13 markers prior to the finale. Steadying the Tigers was forward Angel Reese as she notched her 34th double-double for the season, finishing with 15 points and 10 boards.
Iowa’s leader Caitlin Clark was her usual self as she set a new record for most points in the tournament after unloading 30 points to go along with her 8 assists in the loss. But LSU’s total team effort was just too much for any individual to overcome, no matter how virtuosic the solo performance might be.
The Tigers had 26 points off 16 Hawkeye turnovers. LSU’s bench scoring even crushed Iowa’s, 30-8 led by Carson. It was a masterclass of basketball game displayed by coach Kim Mulkey’s charges.
Speaking of coach Mulkey, the monumental triumph signified her fourth NCAA chip. She’s the first woman to coach multiple squads to a national title.
19,482 spectators came out to see the historic game, which capped off a tournament record of over 350,000 members of the live audience all throughout the tourney.
A lot of firsts, a lot of history made was made during this year’s March Madness. And that held true until the final buzzer sounded.