LSU guard Flau’jae Johnson played against the lowa Hawkeyes and Caitlin Clark in the Elite Eight round of 2024 March Madness. This was the game when Clark was at her finest and the Tigers struggled to contain her as she finished with 41 points and 12 assists.

 

LSU lost 94-87, but despite that, Flaujae Johnson looks back at the moment in a different light. During an interview with Ebro in the Morning, the guard recalled their clash and said:

 

“When I got to guard her (Caitlin) a few instances, I feel like I did a pretty good job. She didn’t score on me, so I was kind of happy about that. Mad that we lost, obviously, but just to be able to have that moment.”


This was the same game that led Hailey Van Lith to be flamed by the internet as she failed to guard Clark. However, Johnson came to Van Lith’s defense. In an appearance on the “Baller Alert Show” podcast, she said:

“You could not guard that girl for 40 minutes. But she (Hailey) stepped up for the challenge at the end of the day. I had to follow the scouting report.

Flau’jae Johnson credited Caitlin Clark for changing the course of women’s basketball

 

Ever since she joined lowa in 2020, Caitlin Clark brought increased attention to women’s basketball. 2024 March Madness saw viewership numbers go higher than the men’s tournament, as it drew an average of 18.7 million viewers on ABC and ESPN while peaking at 24 million.

Flaujae Johnson credited the former lowa guard for breaking the barriers and paving the way for future female stars.

“Say what you want, but she [is] a star…. America kind of has gravitated to her, and it’s only just pulling the women up more and more and more, so I love it…. It’s going to give more opportunities for women like me coming up,” Johnson said on The Baller Alert Show.’

With Caitlin Clark moving on to the WNBA, Flaujae Johnson, along with Paige Bueckers and JuJu Watkins, are set to be the new faces of women’s basketball. It is even rumored that the three players will star in the second season of the ‘Full Court Press docuseries. The first was released on May 12 and featured Caitlin Clark, Kamilla Cardoso and Kiki Rice.