Lisa Bluder, head coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes women’s basketball team, just signed her resignation papers after it was confirmed that…
Although the 6-foot-7 superstar on the court has received most of the credit for Iowa’s success over the last two years, Clark and the other Hawkeyes players give credit to the 62-year-old coach off the court.
Since 1983–1984, Bluder has served as head coach at the University of Iowa, spending the final 24 years of his tenure in the state of Iowa. She has guided the Hawkeyes to eight consecutive seasons with 20 wins, amassing 882 victories.
She leads the Hawkeyes (32-4) into the Albany 2 regional final on Monday, where they will face LSU (31-5) in a rematch of last year’s national championship game.
On Sunday, Clark declared, “Coach Bluder is a Hall of Fame coach.” The main quality about her that I found most appealing during the recruitment process is that she is a player’s coach. You won’t have to employ a predetermined offensive scheme against her. She will adjust everything to fit the members of her team and what would position them for maximum success.
In 2019, Bluder won the Naismith National Coach of the Year award. That same year, she also coached Megan Gustafson, who was named the National Player of the Year. However, a large portion of her success has escaped notice.
