GLEN CARBON, Ill. — A historic Iowa women's basketball team barely beat rival UConn to make it to the March Madness championship game scheduled Sunday.
After being down most of the game, Iowa finally pulled ahead and barely pulled out a nail-biting 71-69 win against UConn on Friday.
One local player, Kate Martin, helped make their last match against LSU the most-watched college basketball game in ESPN history with 12.3 million viewers. The Elite Eight game for Iowa against LSU became the most-watched men's or women's collegiate game ever.
At a watch party in Glen Carbon, the Edwardsville native needed no introduction. One of Martin's former high school coaches said they've been waiting for this game their whole lives.
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime situation I don't think I'll see this again in my coaching career," Martin's Edwardsville High School coach Jackie Harlin said at the Friday watch party.
Coaches, former teammates and even Edwardsville teachers watched the Final Four game at Edley's Barbeque in Glen Carbon. All their eyes locked on the sixth-year Iowa women's basketball captain.
"I'm almost speechless when it comes to this whole thing," Martin's JV Edwardsville coach Tanya Holler said. "I text her and I call her family. Do you guys know how big this is, and how this is (a) little girl's dreams come true?"
"It's fun whenever we can be a part of this," Martin said during the pre-game press conference on Thursday heading into the Final Four match-up. "Obviously having stars like Caitlin (Clark) ... that attracts more people. It's fun to be in the position that we're in and be role models."
Grateful for the cheers in Glen Carbon making their way to Cleveland were Martin's parents to watch their daughter battle UConn with one of her best friends and Clark, arguably the face of women's and men's collegiate basketball this year.
"I don't see all the dazzle that comes with this because I think I'm inside the whole situation but Caitlin is just a down-to-earth, good person" Martin's mom, Jill Martin, said. "It's just another one of Kate's teammates who is every bit as hardworking as Kate and they are just a good team."
Before Friday's face-off off Martin's dad, Matt Martin said, "All these girls that are in the Final Four, growing up, UConn was the team they grew up dreaming about playing on. This is a big game. You either wanted to be on the team (or) recruited by the team. If they didn't you were upset. So this is a big game. There will be chips on these girls' shoulders."
SLU's women's basketball team will be fighting for the WNIT crown Saturday against Minnesota. Tip-off for the Billikens is at 2 p.m. on April 6.