IOWA CITY, Iowa — No matter the year or accomplishment, the Iowa women’s basketball team begins the day the same way: in a circle with feet touching feet.
“We say what matters is right here,” guard Kate Martin said. “Anything outside doesn’t matter. We care about each other’s opinions in this circle. We care about what the person to our left and to our right are doing, and it doesn’t really matter what Jimmy on Twitter thinks about us.”
That approach could apply even more this year for the Hawkeyes, who are coming off an NCAA Tournament runner-up finish and boast the returning national player of the year in Caitlin Clark. The interest and scrutiny will be intense this year. But so is the popularity.
Iowa set the Big Ten record last year in average women’s basketball attendance at 11,142 fans per game. This year, its attendance will dwarf every number before it. Two days after the Hawkeyes fell to LSU in the championship, the athletics department paused season-ticket sales for the upcoming season because demand outpaced supply. Once the pause was lifted, the entire season ticket allotment at 15,056-seat Carver-Hawkeye Arena sold out on Aug. 14. The program will stage an exhibition against DePaul on Oct. 15 at Kinnick Stadium. More than 47,000 tickets are sold…
 and show people this is something you should continue to watch,' Clark said at Iowa media day.){kind=link}