The lights in Cleveland were blindingly bright, but Dawn Staley didn't blink. She’d been there before. Most people asking who won march madness women's in 2024 are looking for a simple score, but the 87–75 victory by the South Carolina Gamecocks over the Iowa Hawkeyes was anything but simple. It was a literal redemption arc.
Dawn Staley’s squad didn't just win. They went 38-0. Undefeated.
It’s hard to overstate how difficult that is in the modern era of the portal and NIL. One bad shooting night usually ruins everything. But not for this group. While the world was busy watching Caitlin Clark break every scoring record known to man—and rightfully so—South Carolina was quietly building a defensive machine that eventually suffocated everyone in its path.
Honestly, it felt inevitable. By the time the final buzzer rang, the conversation shifted from "who is the best player?" to "is this the greatest team we've ever seen?"
The Rematch That Lived Up to the Hype
If you follow college hoops, you know the backstory. In 2023, Iowa knocked South Carolina out in the Final Four. It was a massive upset. Staley had to listen to a year's worth of chatter about how her team couldn't handle Iowa’s perimeter shooting.
Fast forward to the 2024 National Championship.
The game started like a track meet. Caitlin Clark came out firing, putting up 18 points in the first quarter alone. It looked like Iowa might actually pull off the impossible again. You could feel the tension in the arena. But South Carolina is deep. Kinda terrifyingly deep. Staley rotates players like a hockey coach, and eventually, that fatigue starts to set in for the opponent.
By the second half, the Gamecocks' size was just too much. Kamilla Cardoso, standing 6-foot-7, was a problem Iowa couldn't solve. She finished with 15 points and 17 rebounds, basically camping out in the paint and daring anyone to come inside. It wasn't just about height, though. It was about relentless pressure. Raven Johnson, who had been "waved off" by Clark in the previous year's matchup, played the defensive game of her life. She took that moment personally. You could see it in how she moved.
Why the Bench Was the Real MVP
Most championship teams rely on two or three stars. South Carolina? Their bench outscored Iowa’s bench 37–0. That’s not a typo.
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Think about that for a second. An entire unit of players who don't even start could have been a top-seed team on their own. Tessa Johnson, a freshman who most casual fans hadn't heard of before the tournament, came off the pine to lead the Gamecocks with 15 points. She looked like a veteran out there.
Iowa, meanwhile, had to lean heavily on Clark, Kate Martin, and Hannah Stuelke. They played massive minutes. By the fourth quarter, the legs were gone. The shots that were falling in the first ten minutes were hitting the front of the rim. That’s the "Gamecock Effect." They don't just beat you; they outwear you.
The Caitlin Clark Factor and the Growth of the Game
We can't talk about who won march madness women's without acknowledging the person who didn't win the trophy but won the cultural moment. Caitlin Clark changed the economics of women’s sports.
The TV ratings for the 2024 final actually beat the men’s final. Let that sink in. For the first time in history, more people were tuned into the women’s championship than the men’s. 18.9 million viewers. It’s wild.
Even though Iowa lost, Clark’s legacy was cemented. She finished her career as the all-time leading scorer in NCAA Division I history, men’s or women’s. But South Carolina proved that a "super team" built on defense and depth will almost always trump a singular superstar in a 40-minute game.
A Defensive Masterclass
Dawn Staley is a defensive genius. Period.
She knew she couldn't stop Clark entirely. Nobody can. Instead, the strategy was to make everything difficult. Every catch was contested. Every screen was fought through. By switching different defenders onto Clark—Raven Johnson, Bree Hall, even flashes of Milaysia Fulwiley—they forced her to work for every single inch of hardwood.
It’s a gritty way to win. It’s not always highlight-reel dunks or 30-foot step-backs, but it’s effective. South Carolina’s defensive rating was at the top of the charts all season, and they stayed true to that identity when the pressure was highest.
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Breaking Down the Key Stats
If you're a numbers person, the box score tells a very specific story about how this game was won:
The rebounding margin was lopsided. South Carolina grabbed 51 boards compared to Iowa's 29. You simply cannot win a championship giving up that many second-chance opportunities. The Gamecocks had 18 offensive rebounds. That’s 18 times Iowa played great defense for 25 seconds only to have to do it all over again. It’s soul-crushing for a defense.
Then there’s the shooting percentage inside the arc. South Carolina shot nearly 48% from the field. While they weren't spectacular from the three-point line (hitting about 42% on limited attempts), they dominated the "high-percentage" areas.
Iowa struggled from deep after that hot start, finishing at 30% from three-point land. In a game decided by 12 points, those missed long-range bombs were the difference between a tie game and a double-digit loss.
The Dawn Staley Era is Officially Here
Move over, Geno Auriemma. There's a new gold standard in college basketball.
With this win, Staley secured her third national title since 2017. She has built a culture that attracts the best talent in the country but somehow keeps them humble enough to play "team-first" ball. It’s a rare feat in the era of "look-at-me" social media.
South Carolina has become the program that everyone else is chasing. They’ve lost very few games over the last three seasons combined. It’s a dynasty. Plain and simple.
Some people argue that parity is bad for sports, but watching South Carolina play is like watching a masterclass in fundamentals. They play the right way. They share the ball. They defend like their lives depend on it. Whether you're a fan of them or not, you have to respect the discipline.
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What This Means for the Future of the WNBA
The 2024 draft that followed this tournament was the most anticipated in history. We saw Clark go #1 to Indiana, and Cardoso go #3 to Chicago. The rivalry from the college stage is translating directly into professional ticket sales.
The fact that the national champion was a team built on collective strength rather than one "face of the league" is actually great for the WNBA. It proves that the talent pool is deeper than it’s ever been. We aren't just looking at one or two stars anymore; we’re looking at entire rosters of pro-ready athletes.
Common Misconceptions About the 2024 Final
A lot of people think Iowa "choked." They didn't.
Iowa played a great game. They just ran into a buzzsaw. Another misconception is that South Carolina is just "bigger." While height helps, their conditioning is what actually won them the trophy. They were sprinting in transition in the final two minutes like it was the opening tip.
Lastly, there's a myth that women's basketball isn't "profitable" or "popular." The 2024 tournament shattered that forever. When you have a compelling product—like a 38-0 team facing off against the greatest scorer in history—people will watch.
Actionable Takeaways for Following the Sport
If you're looking to keep up with who is dominating women's college basketball now, don't just look at the AP Top 25.
- Watch the Defensive Metrics: Teams that rank in the top 5 for defensive efficiency (like South Carolina always does) are the ones that survive the chaotic opening rounds of March Madness.
- Follow the Recruiting Trails: Dawn Staley has already secured commitments from more top-tier talent. The "rich get richer" in this sport, so keeping an eye on where the top high school guards are landing will tell you who will win next year.
- Pay Attention to the Transfer Portal: In 2024, several key players for many teams were transfers. While South Carolina stayed largely "homegrown," the landscape is changing fast. A single transfer can turn a Sweet 16 team into a Final Four contender overnight.
- Check the Strength of Schedule: South Carolina played a brutal non-conference schedule. They were battle-tested long before March. Always look at who a team plays in November and December to see if they're actually "championship material."
The story of who won march madness women's in 2024 isn't just about a trophy in a case in Columbia, South Carolina. It’s about the moment the sport went mainstream. It’s about a coach who built a program in her own image—tough, resilient, and unapologetic. And mostly, it’s about a team that refused to lose, proving that even in a world of superstars, the best team still wins.
To stay ahead of the curve for the upcoming season, start tracking the "Points in the Paint" stat for the top 10 teams. It’s the most consistent indicator of which team can control the tempo of a high-stakes tournament game. Keep an eye on the SEC specifically, as the conference continues to pour money into coaching and facilities, making it the toughest gauntlet in the country.