Back in July last year, the Iowa Hawkeyes had a special gift waiting from Caitlin Clark. The entire squad received the then newly released Caitlin Clark’s Kobe 5 Protro Player Edition’s Indiana Fever colorway. “Our girl CC has us ready for the season 🔥,” the official Iowa Hawkeyes account wrote. Cut to today, the same shoes have now become Iowa Sophomore Taylor Stremlow’s go-to in the big moments. 

After finishing 25-5 overall and 15-3 in the Big Ten, 2-seed Iowa marched past Illinois in the Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals with the final scoreline reading 64-58. After not scoring in 33 Big Ten Tournament minutes last season, Taylor Stremlow finally fired this time around. With 7 first-half points, she finished with 9 points, 6 assists and 4 rebounds. During this special performance, she chose a special pair of shoes: the Caitlin Clark PEs.

“No, I brought two pairs. I brought some white ones, and then they were like, We’re wearing the white jerseys today. “I’m like, That would be way too much white. Then I broke out the Caitlins.” Stremlow said after the game. “They are my favorite, the Kobes. Kobes are my go-to.”  The Caitlin Clark Kobes have become widely popular. The Indiana Fever colorway lasted a few minutes before being sold out. Then the Nike Kobe 6 Protro “Light Armory Blue,” released later in November, also had the same response. 

They have been worn in the NBA as well, with stars like Alex Caruso, Herbert Jones, Jaden McDaniels, Tari Eason and Julian Champagnie sporting them during games. The Nike Kobe 6 Caitlin Clark colorway was the most worn shoe in December 2025 while the Indiana Fever colorway was 5th on the list. No wonder Stremlow prefers those. As Iowa approaches the business end of the season, Stremlow hopes she will see Caitlin Clark in the stands or catch up with Iowa games. 

“Not recently,” Stremlow said when asked if she has spoken to Clark. “I hope she’ll see a game, see the shoes.”

Well, it’s unlikely Clark will be there for the Big Ten Tournament. She is now off to her Team USA duties. The 2026 World Cup Qualifiers are scheduled from March 11-17 and she is already at the Camp. But she could be watching from China if her schedule permits her to. Maybe she could make the trip for the NCAA tournament. As they head into the business end of the season, Coach Jensen is firm on retaining their age-old philosophy. 

Jan Jensen Commits To Protect The Iowa Philosophy Post Caitlin Clark

Caitlin Clark was the engine of this Iowa side during her time here. In 4 years, she averaged 28.4 points and 8.2 assists per game. She was the orchestrator, distributing the ball whenever needed while getting to her own spots. During her time, the team remained among the top assisting teams. In Clark’s final season, they averaged 20.8 assists per game, the most in the nation. Despite Clark and Lisa Bluder leaving, Jan Jensen is continuing that trend and relying on it in the biggest moments of the season. 

Against Illinois, they had 20 assists and they averaged 21.2 per game over the season. When it comes to assist rate, they are second in the country at 70.7%.  “That’s just something—I’ve been at Iowa now since 2000, and that’s kind of been engrained, and I think the philosophy we’ve always had. We just really always celebrate the pass,” said Jensen after the game. “I think we try to make almost a bigger deal out of the pass on some occasions than the score itself. You try to drill it. You’re trying to let them know what option one and option two are.”

Last season was not as high as Jensen would have liked. They averaged 18.1 assists per game, which ranked 10th in the country. Their assist rate stood at 65.8%. It was Jensen’s first season after losing two of the most important pieces in the program. However, with time, she will only lean into this style, no matter who the players are.