No stranger to the spotlight, Iowa Hawkeyes star Caitlin Clark will be receiving one ESPN’s reporter’s full attention in the upcoming NCAA tournament.
Holly Rowe has been assigned by ESPN as the reporter covering the “Caitlin Clark beat” for the first two rounds of the 2024 NCAA tournament, according to The Athletic’s Richard Deitsch. Rowe will also take on duties as a sideline reporter for Iowa’s opening-round NCAA games.
Rowe joined the network full-time in 1998 and boasts decades of experience covering women’s basketball.
“[Holly] has been on the Caitlin Clark beat, if you will, tracking and following her and being present with her when she broke records earlier in the year,” said ESPN vice president of production Sara Gaiero. “That level of coverage is needed and necessary and warranted this year. It’s not something we’ve done for the previous first and second rounds for a specific player.”
Rowe, who made history as the Utah Jazz’s first female color commentator in 2021, reportedly asked her bosses if she could focus exclusively on women’s college basketball this season.
The ESPN stalwart herself expressed excitement about her Clark assignment, which will involve reporting on everything from the Hawkeyes guard’s practices to postgame reactions.
“I am honored to say that I am the Caitlin Clark reporter,” Rowe said on Saturday. “We have had a presence on the ground covering the special moments with Caitlin this year, and I have been at every one of her games where she set a record. I see it as an extension of the dedicated coverage we have had with Caitlin all year. I think there is an intrigue and appetite for all things Caitlin.”
Clark’s Hawkeyes are coming off their third consecutive Big Ten championship and are entering the NCAA tournament as the projected No. 1 seed on Selection Sunday. The full tournament bracket will be revealed at 8 p.m. ET and the selection show will be televised on ESPN.
The 22-year-old Clark became the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer earlier this month and is averaging 31.9 points, 7.3 rebounds and 8.9 assists in her senior season. Clark will get one final shot at adding an NCAA title to her sparkling collegiate resume before she enters the 2024 WNBA draft on April 15.
