Caitlin Clark and Kate Martin never missed a beat — literally.

The two started 139 games together over the last four years. Gabbie Marshall has played in 166 career games — the most among any Big Ten women’s basketball player ever.

These three helped create an untouchable legacy, and perhaps the greatest era in Hawkeye history ended Sunday night.

Three starters that climbed to the top of Mount Everest after nearly everybody wrote them off before the season even started.

Iowa clashed with the goliaths of the sport. They took down Kim Mulkey and Geno Auriemma, and are the only team in the last two seasons to defeat South Carolina.

Not hoisting a shiny trophy hurts, and it will. But that’s not the legacy this team leaves behind.

“Time goes so fast, like it’s crazy. I can’t believe this is my last career game,” Clark said.

“There’s so much to be proud of. People didn’t love us for our wins, I think they loved us for the way we carried ourselves every single day. For the way we played for one another.

The joy we played with, the the passion we played with. The competitive spirit we had. The way we high-fived and celebrated our teammates’ success. That’s the reason people loved tuning in to Iowa women’s basketball.”

“I idolized Iowa women’s basketball,” Martin said. “But it wasn’t like it is now. It is super cool to be a part of. I think our legacy is that we changed women’s basketball in a sense.

It’s just really cool to be associated with that, and I feel super grateful.”

“We’ve been together for so long, we’ve been through it together,” Marshall said.

“The ups and the downs, everything in between. I think just having those moments on and off the court to just build the chemistry between the three of us and Coach Bluder.”