Iowa's Clark breaks NCAA women's hoops scoring record
Caitlin Clark's latest accolade is the most astounding yet.
The Iowa star set the new NCAA Division I women's basketball scoring record with her eighth point Thursday in a 106-89 win over Michigan, courtesy of a deep trey in the first quarter.
Clark finished the contest with a career-high 49 points while adding 13 assists and five rebounds.
HISTORY ‼️ Caitlin Clark is the new NCAA Women’s Basketball’s All-Time Leading Scorer. 🐐#CaitlinCoverage x @statefarm
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) February 16, 2024
💻: PeacockI pic.twitter.com/c2Kdej2gIR
"I mean, we all knew I was going to shoot a logo three. Come on," Clark said postgame, courtesy of Dallas Jones of HawkFanatic.
The 22-year-old surpassed Washington product and current Las Vegas Aces sharpshooter Kelsey Plum, who set the mark in February 2017 before going first overall in the 2017 WNBA Draft.
| Rank | Player | School | GP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Caitlin Clark* | Iowa | 126 | 3569 |
| 2 | Kelsey Plum | Washington | 139 | 3527 |
| 3 | Kelsey Mitchell | Ohio State | 139 | 3402 |
| 4 | Jackie Stiles | Missouri State | 129 | 3393 |
| 5 | Brittney Griner | Baylor | 148 | 3283 |
| 6 | Dyaisha Fair* | Syracuse | 146 | 3224 |
*Denotes player active during 2023-24 season.
Similarly to Plum, Clark is expected to be the first player chosen at the 2024 draft in April.
Thursday's contest was temporarily stopped at the next dead ball for the home crowd to recognize Clark's record-breaking moment.
LEGEND.
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) February 16, 2024
💻: Peacock pic.twitter.com/LVuhzptiru
"She's such a special player. ... I thought it was wonderful that she hits a logo three to put her over. I intended to call a timeout but it happened so fast I couldn't get it out," Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder said, per Jones.
Clark is the third-leading scorer all time for NCAA men's and women's Division I basketball behind LSU legend Pete Maravich (3,667 points) and Detroit Mercy's Antoine Davis (3,664).
The Des Moines, Iowa, native is the reigning Naismith College Player of the Year and the only player to ever lead Division I basketball in points and assists, which she did during the 2021-22 season. Clark also leads both categories this campaign (32.2 PPG and 8.2 AST heading into Sunday's contest) and would become the first player to lead Division I in scoring on three occasions.