Caitlin Clark was not happy with the officials in Iowa’s March Madness first-round win over Holy Cross on Saturday, with the star making her feelings known before her father appeared to intervene.

Caitlin Clark’s dad appeared to urge her to stop going at the referees to complain about calls during Iowa’s 91-65 win over Holy Cross in its NCAA Tournament opener on Saturday.

Iowa defeated Holy Cross by a comfortable scoreline to advance to the next round, with Clark contributing 27 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds in another dominant performance. Still Clark looked a little restless throughout the first half, staying in the referee’s ear.

In the second quarter, the camera panned to Clark’s father, Brent Clark, who did not look to be happy with her speaking to officials as he shouted toward the floor at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Cameras showed the moment, and Brent Clark appeared to tell her to zip it.

Clark was asked about her antics toward officials after the game. “I should probably smile more. I’m a competitor,” she told reporters. “I love this game. I’m a perfectionist.

But hey, I’m competitive. I want to win and I want our team to play our best basketball.”

The guard continued to shine in the second-half, with Iowa pulling away to win the game by 26 points. And Clark was thankful to have avoided injury after she was hit in the face by Holy Cross guard Bronagh Power-Cassidy, who had a strong performance herself to keep the game close until a run by the Hawkeyes just before halftime.

Caitlin Clark's dad caught on camera appearing to tell Iowa star to leave ref alone - The Mirror US

“It was kind of just a stinger to the nose,” Clark said. “Honestly, I’m totally OK.”

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The top-seeded Hawkeyes begun the game slower than they’d have liked in their March Madness opener, before Clark, Kate Martin and Addison O’Grady begun to hit some big shots to give them all the momentum heading into the second-half.

Iowa needed to play the second half without Hannah Stuelke, who is likely to be the go-to option once Clark leaves the team after this season for the WNBA. Stuelke played just 10 minutes in the game.

Afterward Iowa head coach Lisa Blunder revealed that Stuelke had been dealing with a migraine, with the team wanting to deploy her as little as needed. “I wasn’t feeling good at half,” the forward explained. “Just migraines. I think we had the game handled, so there was no point in me playing when we play again in two days.”

Iowa will take on the winner of Saturday evening’s West Virginia vs. Princeton game on Monday. If it reaches the Elite 8, it could encounter LSU – the same team it met in last year’s national championship game.