Iowa vs. Louisville final score, results: Caitlin Clark sets records, leads Hawkeyes to first Final Four since 1993

Sara Tidwell

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Iowa vs. Louisville final score, results: Caitlin Clark sets records, leads Hawkeyes to first Final Four since 1993 image

Iowa is headed to its first women's Final Four in 30 years after defeating Louisville 97-83 in a heated Elite Eight battle of the birds Sunday night.

As for the star of the game, ESPN’s Ryan Ruocco said it best: "There are stars and there are solar systems." Caitlin Clark is the latter.

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Also mentioned on the ESPN broadcast: the Iowa guard has a fire big enough to light up the entire team, as teammate Monika Czinano put it.

Clark put on quite the light show for the fans in Seattle, finishing with the first 40-point triple-double in NCAA Tournament history, men or women. She added 10 rebounds and 12 assists.

She also became the first player reach 900-plus points and 300-plus assists in a single season.

MORE: When is Caitlin Clark eligible to enter the WNBA Draft?

Clark wasn't the only big-time contributor for the Hawkeyes. McKenna Warnock converted every pass she could get from Clark to score 17 points. Gabrielle Marshall added 14 and Czinano had nine before fouling out.

On Louisville's side, Hailey Van Lith and Olivia Cochran worked non-stop. Cochran set a career high in her 20-point, 14-rebound double-double. Van Lith added 27 points, but it wasn't enough to keep the Cards from sinking.

MORE: Watch 2023 NCAA Women's Tournament games live on Sling TV

The Sporting News tracked live scoring updates and highlights for No. 2 Iowa vs. No. 5 Louisville in the NCAA Women's Tournament. Follow below for complete results from the Elite Eight game.

Iowa vs. Louisville score

  1 2 3 4 F
Iowa 25 23 30 19 97
Louisville 21 22 16 24 83

Iowa vs. Louisville score live updates, highlights from 2023 Women's March Madness

(All times Eastern)

Final: Iowa 97, Louisville 83

11:31 p.m.: The game has come to a standstill as the clock runs out. Iowa advances to their first Final Four in three decades on a 95-83 victory. They will face the winner of tomorrow's game between South Carolina and Maryland.

11:26 p.m.: Foul after foul after foul. 1:16 left on the game clock.

11:20 p.m.: Cochran and Van Lith are busting their butts to close the gap. Louisville is currently on a 13-1 streak, down 10 with only two minutes to go.

11:18 p.m.: Czinano has fouled out.

11:03 p.m.: Iowa fans have traveled far and wide to be here to support their women's team. Broadcasters say that the presence is loud and ridiculously passionate to be all the way out in Seattle.

11:01 p.m.: Hawkeyes with a 22 point lead at this point.

Third quarter: Iowa 78, Louisville 59

10:54 p.m.: Iowa on an 11-0 run to close out the third quarter and double their lead over the Cardinals. Clark is close to a triple-double, with 33 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.

Van Lith has 20 points herself.

10:46 p.m.: Iowa with their largest lead of the night at 13 points, 65-52. 

10:40 p.m.: Warnock picks up her third foul and heads to the bench. She has 15 points, and Iowa has managed to hold a nine to 10 point lead over the Cardinals thus far. More people contributing besides Warnock and Clark now.

Halftime: Iowa 48, Louisville 43

10:10 p.m.: Van Lith is fouled with 1.5 seconds left on the clock in the half. She put up 17 in the half.

Clark put up 22. She said the only thing they changed after that rough start was the defense by being stronger, not allowing them to hit critical shots.

10:07 p.m.: Louisville is struggling from the perimeter, only going 9-for-21 beyond the arc. They don't have many who are able to perform that way outside of Van Lith and Carr.

10:02 p.m.: Clark already over 20 points before the half. Warnock adds 13. The pair are on fire, either scoring or passing to each other to score. Only other two contributing to the 41 points are Czinano with 4 and Martin with 3.

First quarter: Iowa 25, Louisville 21

9:42 p.m.: Clark gives Iowa their first lead of the night with a show-stopping three. She's cooking, 15 points on the board in just the first quarter. She also assisted every other scored shot.

Carr is 3-for-3 from beyond the arc in the first quarter, as well. She's leading Louisville with nine points. Louisville head coach tells Holly Rowe that she's taking good shots and really knocking them down.

9:35 p.m.: Clark is the first player in Division I history to amass 900+ points and 300+ assists in a single season.

9:33 p.m.: All defense targeted at Clark, something she's used to. She whips it to a wide open Warnock, who sinks a three and then brings it back for a layup to lessen the lead to one.

9:30 p.m.: Caitlin Clark sinks back-to-back-to-back shots to get Iowa on the board finally. This is apparently the first time Bird is watching Clark play in person, ESPN broadcaster's say she watches her regularly on TV. Clark is often compared to a mix of Bird and Diana Taurasi.

9:28 p.m.: ESPN broadcasters say Sue Bird showed up to Iowa's shoot-around and spent time with them in their huddle, speaking about how this game tonight is the hardest game to win on the road to a national championship. Bird is in the stands right now watching the game.

9:25 p.m.: Hawkeyes not on the board yet at just under three minutes in. Van Lith came in hot and is continuing to knock them back with ease.

9:22 p.m.: Louisville wins the tip and Van Lith gets the scoring started with a secure jumper.

9:05 p.m.: The starting lineups have been released.

For the Hawkeyes:

  1. Kate Martin
  2. Caitlin Clark
  3. Gabbie Marshall
  4. McKenna Warnock
  5. Monika Czinano

For the Cardinals:

  1. Chrislyn Carr
  2. Mykasa Robinson
  3. Hailey Van Lith
  4. Nyla Harris
  5. Olivia Cochran

9:03 p.m.: The game will start at 9:20 p.m., following the conclusion of LSU-Miami.

8:26 p.m.: Iowa is the favorite to win this game. BetMGM has the spread sitting at -5.5 for the Hawkeyes.

8:20 p.m.: Both teams have arrived to the madness at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, SC.

What channel is Iowa vs. Louisville on today?

  • TV channel: ESPN
  • Live stream: Sling TV, ESPN app

Iowa vs. Louisville will be broadcast nationally on ESPN. The game is also being live streamed through the ESPN app and Sling TV.

Iowa vs. Louisville start time

  • Date: Sunday, March 26
  • Time: 9 p.m. ET

The Elite Eight game between Iowa and Louisville will tip off at 9 p.m. ET from Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle.

Women's March Madness schedule 2023

Elite Eight

Sunday, March 26

Matchup Time (ET) TV
(3) LSU 54. (9) Miami 42 7 p.m. ESPN
(2) Iowa vs. (5) Louisville 9 p.m. ESPN

Monday, March 27

Matchup Time (ET) TV
(1) South Carolina vs. (2) Maryland 7 p.m. ESPN
(1) Virginia Tech vs. (3) Ohio State 9 p.m. ESPN

Final Four

Friday, March 31

Matchup Time (ET) TV
(3) LSU vs. TBD 7 p.m. ESPN
TBD 9:30 p.m. ESPN

National championship

Sunday, April 2

Matchup Time (ET) TV
TBD 3:30 p.m. ABC

Sara Tidwell

Sara Tidwell Photo

Sara Tidwell is an editorial intern with The Sporting News. A native to Michigan's Thumb region, she received her Bachelor's degree in journalism from Michigan State University. Previous bylines include the Detroit News, Cincinnati Enquirer, Hartford Courant and The State News.