Former Iowa women’s basketball coach Lisa Bluder was in attendance when Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever took on the New York Liberty at Gainbridge Fieldhouse Thursday night.
Former Iowa women’s basketball coach Lisa Bluder is keeping busy post-retirement. The 63-year-old traveled to Indiana to support ex-Hawkeye Caitlin Clark at the Indiana Fever’s home opener.
On Thursday, Bluder and Jan Jensen – the coach succeeding her at Iowa – sat near the court as the Fever took on the New York Liberty. Shortly before tipoff, the duo embraced Clark and offered words of encouragement as she went through warmups.
Fans in attendance at Gainbridge Fieldhouse made sure to provide Bluder and Jensen with a warm welcome. As the pair were featured on the jumbotron, the home crowd got up to their feet and showered them with cheers.
Speaking to 16NewsNow ahead of the game, Bluder could hardly contain her enthusiasm to watch Clark play in her second-ever WNBA regular-season game. The legendary coach mentored the basketball phenom for four seasons at Iowa from 2020-2024, helping her become one of the greatest players in NCAA Division I history.
“I’m so excited for Caitlin and for all the Indiana Fever fans,” she said. “Give her a little time, it’s gonna be absolutely amazing. She’s an incredible young woman and she’s gonna represent this state and this city so well.”
It would be wise for Clark to listen to her former coach and not become concerned after a difficult evening for the Fever. The Iowa icon struggled to make an impact against the Liberty, scoring just nine points as Indiana lost 102-66 to its guests from New York.
Discussing the new wave of fans that Clark has brought to the WNBA and women’s basketball as a whole, Bluder exclaimed: “It’s the movement, right? It’s time for women’s basketball to grow and we’re gonna keep growing it.”
Following a decorated 24-year career with the Hawkeyes that featured 23 winning seasons, Bluder revealed earlier this week that she’d be stepping down from her head coaching position. Once news of Bluder’s departure broke, Clark was one of the first people to pen a touching tribute.
“Simply no one better at building a team,” Clark wrote on X. “Thank you for believing in me more than anyone. Enjoy retirement, coach. Very much deserved.”
Under Bluder’s leadership, Iowa amassed a 528-254 record, additionally boasting five Sweet 16 berths, three Elite Eights and 18 NCAA Tournaments in total. The Hawkeyes advanced to the national championship game in each of the last two seasons, but would ultimately fall to LSU and South Carolina in 2023 and 2024, respectively.
While recently on vacation in Phoenix with her husband Dave, Bluder decided the time was right to call it quits on an incredible career. “Why now? Why not?” she asked, per Hawk Central. “It’s an opportunity for Dave and I to travel while we’re still healthy.
“My son [David Jr.] is going to be a senior at Grinnell College next year, and I’ll get to see all of his games. I missed so many of my kids’ things, and it’s time for me to be able to give to them fully. It’s a good time to go out, quite honestly.
“It’s a time-consuming job. It’s nice to be able to breathe a little bit right now and not jump right back into workouts that’ll be starting in a month.”
