Lisa Bluder calls officiating in national championship 'frustrating'

Iowa and LSU battled for the national championship on Sunday night in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament, and officiating was a hot topic during and after the game. LSU ultimately won 102-85 to earn the national title, and Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder expressed her frustration with officiating after the game.

“I can’t comment on the officials. It’s very frustrating because I feel like I can’t talk to them,” Bluder said after the game. “They won’t even listen. That’s what’s frustrating is there wasn’t even a conversation that could be had.”

Iowa was in foul trouble for much of the game. Both McKenna Warnock and Monika Czinano ended up fouling out during the game, while Caitlin Clark played much of the game with four fouls.

Later in the game, Clark was hit with a controversial technical foul. After she tossed the ball behind her without saying a single word to an official or opposing player, the officials decided that was enough to warrant a technical. That call drew quite the reaction nationwide, and Bluder and Clark couldn’t believe that it was called in that spot.

“When your two seniors have to sit on the bench — they don’t know they’re seniors. I get it,” said Bluder. “But those two women didn’t deserve it. I don’t think so. And then Caitlin getting a T. I don’t know. It’s too bad. Yeah, it’s too bad.”

Clark has been the talk of the NCAA Women’s Tournament. She played the rest of the game without picking up her fifth foul, and ended up with 30 points and eight assists on 9-for-22 shooting, which included 8-for-19 from beyond three-point range.

Clark echoed Bluder’s comments on questionable officiating against Iowa

Bluder was obviously frustrated after the game, as was Clark. She had a similar viewpoint of the questionable calls, which have drawn quite the reaction around the country.

“Obviously, foul trouble is not really what you want in a national championship game. Especially for our two seniors who have given so much to this program and had to finish their careers on the bench,” said Clark. “It’s not something they deserved by any means.”

“I thought they called it very, very tight. I don’t know about the two push-offs in the second quarter. I’m sure they saw that I pushed off and they called it and whatnot. And then hit me with the technical foul in the third for throwing the ball under the basket. Sometimes that’s how things go.”

Regardless of the eventual outcome, Iowa’s run in the tournament was tremendous. The Hawkeyes’ run included a win over South Carolina, who was one of four No. 1 seeds in this year’s field. But even without a national title to show for it, Iowa, and specifically Clark, did a ton for the Iowa community. And that’s exactly what Clark set out to do.