Lisa Bluder on Caitlin Clark's popularity: 'I completely trust her maturity'

Caitlin Clark has won Lisa Bluder and the Iowa Hawkeyes a lot of games over the past four years.

In every phase of the game, Clark is herself — that sentiment remains true off the court and has skyrocketed her into 1 of 1 status in college basketball. Her confidence on the court and while speaking with media, her NIL dealings off the court and everything in between has turned everything she does into must-watch content.

Ahead of Iowa’s Sweet 16 matchup against Colorado on Saturday, Bluder explained why she has let Clark play free and be herself from the beginning instead of making her play within a specific system.

Fubo’s spring offer just kicked off – For a limited time, new subscribers can save $20 on their first month of Fubo’s Pro, Elite, and Premier plans.

“I’d say it’s trust. I completely trust her maturity,” Bluder said of her relationship with Clark. “She is extremely mature, has handled every situation that’s been thrown at her, and she’s had a lot of different situations thrown at her. She’s handled them all beautifully. I think both of those things, trust and maturity, that she can handle it.”

That freedom has allowed Clark to make her mark on college basketball and rewrote history while doing so.

Since Clark arrived on campus, she’s wow’d fans across the nation with her scoring barrage that would eventually see her become the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer. What fans won’t remember, however, is the fact that Clark became of one six women’s college basketball players in history to surpass 1,000 career assists just one game before breaking Pete Maravich’s scoring record.

She enters the Sweet 16 matchup against the Buffs averaging the most points (31.8) and assists (8.8) of any player in the country. Iowa fell just short of winning a national championship during Clark’s junior season last year is now two wins away from being back in the Final Four. Having already declared for the 2024 WNBA Draft, this is Clark’s last ride with Bluder and the Hawkeyes. Win or lose, Clark’s fingerprints will be all over Saturday’s game as they look to return to the Elite Eight for the second straight year.

The opening tip-off between the Hawkeyes and Buffaloes is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET and will air live on ABC, and can be streamed on Fubo. Iowa enters game day as a 6.5-point betting favorite over Colorado, per FanDuel Sportsbook.