The Law Firm of Clark and Czinano, also known as The Law Firm, were a duo of college basketball players consisting of Caitlin Clark and Monika Czinano, who both played for the Iowa Hawkeyes from 2020 to 2023. Developed under head coach Lisa Bluder, they were one of the top duos in NCAA Division I, leading Iowa to the 2023 national championship game, two Big Ten tournament titles and one Big Ten regular season title.
Lightly recruited out of high school, Czinano was a reserve for Megan Gustafson in her freshman season at Iowa in 2018–19, before becoming the team's top post player as a sophomore in 2019–20. Clark was one of the top recruits in her class and joined the Hawkeyes in Czinano's junior season in 2020–21 as a starting guard. [1] The duo was nicknamed "The Law Firm of Clark and Czinano," or simply "The Law Firm," by Big Ten Network analyst Christy Winters-Scott, and the nickname subsequently gained popularity among Iowa fans. [2] [3] They benefited from Clark's gravity as a three-point shooter, which spread out defenses and opened passing lanes between Clark and Czinano, as well as Czinano's improved shooting touch. [4] [5]
In the 2020–21 season, Clark and Czinano were named first-team All-Big Ten. [6] They led Iowa to a runner-up finish at the Big Ten tournament, where each member of the duo made the all-tournament team while setting tournament records: Czinano in points and field goals, and Clark in assists. [7] At the end of the season, Clark and Czinano ranked first and second, respectively, among Division I players in field goals. Czinano led the nation in field goal percentage (66.8), and Clark, who earned All-American honors, was the Division I leader in points per game (26.6) and total assists (214). [8] [9]
Entering the 2021–22 season, Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder described Clark and Czinano as one of the best point guard and center duos in the nation. [8] They helped Iowa win Big Ten regular season and tournament titles in the same season for the first time in program history, with Clark being named tournament most outstanding player (MOP) and the duo earning all-tournament team honors. [10] They were both first-team All-Big Ten selections, and Clark was named Big Ten Player of the Year. Clark was a unanimous first-team All-American, and Czinano received All-American honorable mention from the Associated Press (AP). [11] Clark led Division I in points per game (27.0) and assists per game (8.0), and Czinano led the nation in field goal percentage (67.9). They became the first pair of men's or women's Division I teammates to lead the nation in those categories. [1]
The duo played for a third season in 2022–23 after Czinano opted to use her fifth season of eligibility granted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [5] Clark and Czinano became the fourth and fifth Iowa players to reach 2,000 career points, respectively, and were the first teammates in Big Ten history to achieve the feat in the same season. [12] They were both named first-team All-Big Ten, and Clark earned her second straight Big Ten Player of the Year award. [13] Iowa won the 2023 Big Ten tournament, with Clark winning MOP and being joined by Czinano on the all-tournament team. Czinano set the tournament record for field goal percentage (91.7). [14] At the 2023 NCAA tournament, they led the Hawkeyes to their first title game, losing to LSU. [15] Clark was the consensus national player of the year, leading the nation in assists per game (8.6), and Czinano repeated as AP All-American honorable mention. [16]
In the 2023 WNBA draft, Czinano was selected by the Los Angeles Sparks in the third round. [17] Clark was not eligible for the draft until 2024; under the collective bargaining agreement between the WNBA and its players' union, players born in the U.S., or who have played U.S. college basketball, cannot enter the draft until the calendar year of their 22nd birthday, they have received their bachelor's degree, or are set to earn said degree within three months of the draft (whichever comes first). [18] Unlike Czinano, Clark chose not to take advantage of the COVID waiver, announcing near the end of her senior season that she would declare for the 2024 draft. [19]
The Iowa Hawkeyes are the athletic teams that represent the University of Iowa, located in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes have varsity teams in 20 sports, 7 for men and 13 for women; The teams participate in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and are members of the Big Ten Conference. Currently, the school's athletic director is Beth Goetz.
Lisa Marie Bluder is the head coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball program. Formerly, she served as coach of St. Ambrose University and the Drake Bulldogs.
The Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball team is part of the University of Iowa athletics department.
The Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team represents the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. The team is a member of the Big Ten Conference as well as the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The team plays its regular season games at 15,400-seat Carver-Hawkeye Arena, along with men's basketball, wrestling, and volleyball teams.
Jennie Lillis Baranczyk is an American basketball coach who is the current head coach of the University of Oklahoma women's basketball team.
Megan Gustafson is a Spanish-naturalized American professional basketball player for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), and Olympiacos of the Greek Basketball League and Euroleague.
Caitlin Clark is an American college basketball player for the Iowa Hawkeyes of the Big Ten Conference. She is the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer and is regarded as one of the greatest players in college basketball history.
The 2020–21 Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team represented the University of Iowa during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Hawkeyes were led by twenty-first year head coach Lisa Bluder and played their home games at Carver–Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, IA as members of the Big Ten Conference.
The 2022 Big Ten women's basketball tournament was a postseason tournament held from March 2–6, 2022 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The winner of this tournament, Iowa, earned an automatic bid to the 2022 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament.
The 2021–22 Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team represented the University of Iowa during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Hawkeyes were led by head coach Lisa Bluder in her twenty-second season, and played their home games at Carver–Hawkeye Arena as a member of the Big Ten Conference.
Monika Czinano is an American professional basketball player. She plays the power forward and center positions. Czinano, who hails from Watertown, Minnesota, joined the Hawkeye women’s basketball program in 2018. As a freshman, she played behind former Hawkeye Megan Gustafson in the 2018–19 season, and took over the starting center position in 2019–20.
The 2023 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament was a single-elimination tournament of 68 teams to determine the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college basketball national champion for the 2022–23 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The 41st edition of the tournament began on March 15, 2023, and concluded on April 2 with the championship game at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.
The 2023 Big Ten women's basketball tournament was held from March 1–5, 2023 at Target Center in Minneapolis. As the tournament winner, Iowa received the conference's automatic bid to the 2023 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament. This was the last year of the tournament in which the preliminary rounds were broadcast on Big Ten Network and the final was broadcast on ESPN, as in 2024 these would move to Peacock and CBS, respectively.
The 2022–23 Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team represented the University of Iowa during the 2022–23 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Hawkeyes were led by head coach Lisa Bluder in her twenty-third season, and played their home games at Carver–Hawkeye Arena as a member of the Big Ten Conference.
The 2023 NCAA Division I women's basketball championship game was the final game of the 2023 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament. It determined the national champion for the 2022–23 NCAA Division I women's basketball season and was contested by the Iowa Hawkeyes from the Big Ten Conference and the Louisiana State (LSU) Tigers from the Southeastern Conference. The game was played on April 2, 2023, at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. In the game, LSU defeated Iowa 102–85 to win their first national championship, setting a record for most points scored by a team in an NCAA women's basketball championship game. LSU's Angel Reese recorded a double-double and was voted the Most Outstanding Player (MOP) of the Final Four.
Jan Jensen is an American basketball coach and former basketball player. Jensen currently serves as the assistant head coach for the Iowa Hawkeyes women's team. She spent her playing career at Drake, where she led NCAA Division I women's in scoring in 1990–91.
The 2023–24 Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team represents the University of Iowa during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Hawkeyes are led by head coach Lisa Bluder in her twenty-fourth season, and play their home games at Carver–Hawkeye Arena as a member of the Big Ten Conference.
Crossover at Kinnick was an American exhibition women's college basketball game between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the DePaul Blue Demons. Held at Kinnick Stadium, the home stadium of the Hawkeyes football team, the game set the women's basketball single-game attendance record (55,646). Led by reigning national player of the year Caitlin Clark, who had a 34-point triple-double, Iowa defeated DePaul, 94–72.
Hannah Stuelke is an American college basketball player for the Iowa Hawkeyes of the Big Ten Conference.
Sydney Affolter is an American college basketball player for the Iowa Hawkeyes of the Big Ten Conference.
