Iowa exorcised its 2023 NCAA Tournament demons with a Final Four win against LSU, the same team that beat the Hawkeyes in last season's national title game..
Next up, Iowa will face South Carolina with the championship on the line.
In a volatile era of college basketball, Iowa has figured out a way to stay nationally relevant over the last two decades. Now, coach Lisa Bluder — along with Clark -- has taken the Hawkeyes from relevant to prominent.
Here's what you need to know about Bluder and her coaching history at Iowa.
WOMEN'S MARCH MADNESS HQ
Live NCAA bracket news | TV schedule | Printable PDF
Who is Lisa Bluder?
Bluder is in her 24th season as head coach of the Iowa women's basketball team. She took over the job in 2000 and has reached the NCAA Tournament all but five of 23 opportunities.
Bluder has rattled off 17 consecutive winning seasons at Iowa, but none have been as successful as the last two. The Hawkeyes won 31 games in 2022-23, reaching their first Final Four under Bluder, and they are a dominant 32-4 this season with championship hopes still very much alive.
Prior to becoming Iowa's head coach, Bluder spent 10 seasons in the same role at Drake. While Bluder was born in Wisconsin, she attended the University of Northern Iowa and has spent her entire coaching career in the state of Iowa.
Bluder has five Big Ten Tournament titles during her time at Iowa, including each of the last three, and the Hawkeyes have won two Big Ten regular season titles during her tenure.
Bluder is 16th in NCAA women's basketball history with 714 Division I wins, nine fewer than LSU's Kim Mulkey. Mulkey has won national championships with two different programs, however. Bluder is still seeking a national title, and she will have to go through Mulkey and the Tigers in the Elite Eight to even get that opportunity.
MORE: Inside Caitlin Clark's huge performance vs. Colorado
Lisa Bluder coaching record
| Years | School | W | L | Pct. |
| 1990-2000 | Drake | 188 | 105 | .642 |
| 2000-present | Iowa | 528 | 253 | .675 |
| Total | 713 | 358 | .666 |
Lisa Bluder spouse
Bluder has been married to her husband, David Bluder, since 1984.
While David has mostly remained a quiet supporter of his wife, he wrote a book about gambling and sports in 2020. "The Great Gamble" took nearly a decade to complete, David Bluder said at the time, and it was ahead of its time considering the way gambling has spread throughout the sports world over the last few years.
Between Lisa's accomplishments at Iowa and David's work as an author, the Bluder family has a laundry list of impressive accomplishments to its name.
