NCAA Basketball: Caitlin Clark has postgame collision with fan after court-storming

Last year's Wooden National Player of the Year was Iowa's Caitlin Clark, and she could be on her way to winning the honor again in the 2023-2024 season.

Clark and her Iowa Hawkeyes came into Sunday ranked #2 in the nation (behind Dawn Staley's South Carolina basketball team), but they will not be ranked so high when the next iteration of the top-25 is released. Iowa blew a 12-point lead in the 2nd half and was upset in overtime by Ohio State in Columbus by a score of 100-92.

However, it was what happened after the game that had the college basketball world talking. As fans stormed the court to celebrate the victory, Clark was hurrying off the floor. A fan collided with Clark, and both of them went tumbling to the floor. Clark stayed on the floor for several moments before being lifted up by her teammates.

After the game, Clark spoke to the media and was none too happy about the incident. She applauded the environment at the game but called Ohio State's lack of security "disappointing" and claimed that the incident "knocked the wind out of [her]."

Clark's head coach was also frustrated about what happened. Lisa Bluder spoke to the media after the game, calling out the Ohio State Buckeyes fans for "taking out" Clark and for yelling "inappropriate words" at the Iowa players. She summed up the entire incident, calling it "just wrong."

Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith has already spoken to Clark and apologized for what transpired.

The post-game incident marred what was a big game in women's college basketball. Clark had a season-high 44 points in the top-25 matchup, and with the win, Ohio State now controls its own destiny in the Big 10.

Moving forward, it is unclear if what happened to Caitlin Clark will prompt the Big 10 or other conferences (or even the NCAA) to implement measures to prevent court-storming. The SEC is the only major conference with severe penalties for fans rushing the court or field after a game, though, several leagues have small measures in place to dissuade it from happening.