Lisa Bluder praises Sydney Affolter for 'seamless' transition into starting lineup

Iowa’s 2024 March Madness run wouldn’t be possible without the emergence of junior guard Sydney Affolter, who was inserted into the starting five once the postseason began.

Molly Davis was a starter the entire regular season, but in the finale against Ohio State just ahead of the Big Ten Tournament, Davis went down with a knee injury and is yet to return, perhaps doubtful to do so at all. Well, that loss meant someone had to step up, and Affolter had always been ready if her number was called.

“All year long I was telling her, you’re the sixth player in our league. You could be starting on every other team,” Hawkeye head coach Lisa Bluder said of Affolter after a strong showing in the postseason. She admitted that Affolter could have gone elsewhere and been a starter, but her decision to stick with it at Iowa is ultimately paying off.

“I loved what she said one time. She said a lot of people jump when they’re not getting the starting position or when they’re not getting their playing time, and they jump to where they think the grass is going to be greener. She said: ‘I stuck with it because I love this place.’ That meant so much to me that she made that comment.”

Now, she’s thriving as a starter. During the regular season, coming off the bench in all but one game, Affolter averaged just over seven points and six rebounds. But in the postseason, having started every game, she’s now accounting for 13 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists and one steal per game.

“I think she just seamlessly went into the starting lineup,” says Bluder, explaining why that’s the case. “And I think it’s because of the style that we play, that we’re kind of position-less so it really doesn’t matter if you’re a 1, 2, 3 or 4, doesn’t really matter, they all do the same things.”

Bluder continued, praising Affolter’s character.

“It really was effortless for her to move in there. She’s always been confident. She’s always been just this tough like chip-on-my-shoulder I’m going to prove you wrong type of kid. So it has been very easy.”

Of course, Bluder would much rather have her full roster, including Molly Davis, available alongside Sydney Affolter. But she’s happy to see that a bad situation for one player has led to something positive for another player.

“Now, would I love to have Molly Davis back? Certainly I would love to have Molly Davis back, but I am so happy that Syd is showing everybody what she’s capable of.”