Aliyah Boston recalls how South Carolina prepared for Caitlin Clark, Iowa in 2023 Final Four

A year ago at this time, Aliyah Boston was preparing for the Final Four as a senior at South Carolina. The Gamecocks entered the weekend undefeated to set up a matchup with Caitlin Clark and Iowa.

That’s where Boston’s college career ended as Clark dropped 41 points to lead the Hawkeyes to the victory and advance to the national championship. Clark’s star continued to rise at the college level as she broke record after record, while Boston won WNBA Rookie of the Year with the Indiana Fever – who possess the top pick once again later this month.

But as her alma mater gets ready to go against Clark once again, she recalled how South Carolina prepared for her last April. It won’t be easy for the Gamecocks to contain the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer, especially if the rest of the team catches fire, as well.

Try Fubo for FREE today and don’t miss any of the action!

“We just talked about how she scores the ball,” Boston said during Saturday’s open practice. “That’s exactly what she did. There were a lot of different schemes that we planned to do. But Caitlin shot the ball really well, and I think so did her other [teammates]. That’s the problem. When everyone is hitting, it really opens up the floor and … it’s hard to track, it’s hard to hedge because one more kickout, no hesitation, they can get a three up.

“And with how well they shot the ball in that game, I think that just goes to show the type of team that they have, the way they shoot the ball. That’s how it went last year.”

Dawn Staley echoed a similar sentiment to Aliyah Boston during her Saturday press conference. While she admitted she hasn’t watched last year’s game, she knows the Gamecocks have to find multiple ways to defend her given her ability to both score and pass.

“You can’t help but to really love how she dissects the game,” Staley said. “You love how she executes. I mean, it’s simple. Her game is simple and yet powerful. How do you defend fundamental basketball with offense with fundamental defense? You can’t. She’s going to win every time.

“So you’ve got to show her different looks in order for her to not settle in and picking you apart. But we also have to play our side of the ball. We got to defend. We got to put some points on the scoreboard.”