December 20, 2023
Locked On Women’s Basketball: Jan Jensen, Iowa basketball paved the way for Caitlin Clark’s time now
By The Next
Jensen and Howard Megdal discuss the state's rich basketball history and its impact on today's game
In the latest episode of Locked On Women’s Basketball, Howard Megdal sits down with Iowa assistant coach Jan Jensen. Not only is Jensen coaching one of the nation’s top players in Caitlin Clark, but she was a legend in the state as well following in her grandmother’s footsteps, playing six-on-six. The two discuss the ties that connect generations of basketball players in Iowa and how she has seen the game change over time.
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“You fall in love with a game and I could have never have imagined that, you know, my love affair with an orange ball would have taken me to the heights it has or given me,” Jensen said. “What I mean by heights is I’ve gotten to travel I played professionally, I get to work with young women every day. I’m not necessarily, you know, qualifying a height by a Final Four or a championship. It’s more so just the places I’ve gotten to see and all because you know I love shooting the ball.”
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In the second segment, they talked more about her current coaching assignment at the University of Iowa where the Hawkeyes are setting attendance records and capturing attention around the world after their national championship appearance last season.
“Part of you has the wonderment and the disbelief still,” Jensen said. “You spend your whole life just trying to get people to just watch. And my whole thing, you know, when I was just a young one out of college is trying to get people not to look at the game and compare men to women, just watch both and enjoy both. They’re very similar, but they’re different.”
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