HAWK-EYE ON THE PRIZE
Iowa’s Clark closes in on hoops history
Caitlin Clark continues to climb up the collegiate leaderboard.
The Iowa superstar jumped from the fourth-most points in NCAA women’s basketball history to second with a 35-point performance Wednesday night on the road against Northwestern.
Clark’s fifth point of the night allowed her to pass Jackie Stiles for third place on the all-time list, while her 14th point pushed her past Ohio State great Kelsey Mitchell for the No. 2 spot.
The 22-year-old Clark now has 3,424 points for her career. The reigning national player of the year is 103 points behind the 3,527 scored by all-time leader Kelsey Plum during her standout career at Washington.
“The coolest thing is just the names that I get to be around,”
Clark said after the 110-74 win. “Those are people that I grew up watching, especially Kelsey Plum, (fifth-leading scorer) Brittney Griner, Kelsey Mitchell. Those are really, really great players. People that are still playing our game at the very highest level and people that you watch night in and night out.”
Third-ranked Iowa has eight regular-season games remaining, giving Clark ample time to reach the record. Clark, a senior guard, is averaging an NCAA-leading 32.1 points per game and has scored at least 30 points in five consecutive games. Her 7.7 assists per game also lead the country.
Now in her fourth season with Iowa, Clark on Wednesday became the Big Ten’s alltime leading scorer.
The NCAA scoring record would add another achievement to Clark’s illustrious résumé. During a run to the NCAA title game last spring, Clark became the first player in tournament history to record a 40-point triple-double. She followed up that performance with a 41-point game in the Final Four to defeat previously unbeaten South Carolina.
After falling to LSU in the 2023 final, Iowa (20-2) remains in the championship mix this season.