Young Iowa fans do their best Caitlin Clark impression
Fans of Caitlin Clark do their best impression of the star Hawkeyes basketball player!
Well that didn’t take long.
With — what else? — a logo 3 just 132 seconds into the game vs. Michigan on Thursday, Caitlin Clark, the senior from Iowa, surpassed former Washington All-American Kelsey Plum to move into first place in the NCAA scoring record book. And the game isn’t even over yet.
So what’s next for Clark?
She is on pace to break Pete Maravich’s record of 3,667 points, set from 1967-70 when he played at LSU, toward the end of Iowa’s regular season. But the record that might matter even more to women’s basketball historians and junkies is 3,649. That’s how many points Lynette Woodard, a Wichita native, scored when she played at Kansas from 1977-81. That was before the NCAA ran women’s college sports though, so Woodard’s record is in the AIWA record books instead of the NCAA record books.
Clark surpassing Woodard and Maravich would quiet anyone complaining about Clark’s record not being legitimate. And given how many games she has left this season, it’s possible Clark will set a scoring mark so high, no one could come close to reaching it.
Follow along as USA TODAY Sports provides updates, scores, highlights, analysis and more.
— Lindsay Schnell
Whew. Anyone tired?
Caitlin Clark certainly isn’t.
After breaking the NCAA scoring record barely two minutes into the game, Clark continued her hot streak, turning in a stunning 23 points on 8-of-10 shooting — including 5-of-7 from 3 — in the first quarter.
Clark’s career high is 46. Is she about to top that?
Behind Clark, Iowa is shooting 75% from the field. Michigan is shooting 59% … is this game going to have multiple record setters?
Of course Caitlin Clark broke the record with a logo 3.
Clark’s second 3-pointer of the game, with 7:43 left in the first quarter, set off pandemonium in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Her mom put her hands on her head and her dad and brothers clapped and exchanged high fives.
The game didn’t stop immediately — Clark had said earlier this week she hoped it wouldn’t”We can’t be wasting timeouts on that,” she’d said. But after Michigan missed a shot at the other end, Iowa coach Lisa Bluder called a timeout so the crowd could recognize Clark’s milestone. She beamed as she was hugged and congratulated by her teammates, and she buried her head in Bluder’s shoulder.
“With 3,528 points in her career, she has officially broken Kelsey Plum’s record,” the public address announcer said, sending the arena into a frenzy again. “Let’s hear it one more time for No. 22, Caitlin Clark!”
Clark had said earlier this week that she wasn’t nervous as she approached the record but excited.
“Go out there, play basketball and have fun, and this is what comes along with it,” she said. “I understand the magnitude of this but it’s just kind of come with how my four years have gone.”
— Nancy Armour
Iowa vs. Michigan tips at 8 p.m. ET and can be streamed on Peacock.
When Caitlin Clark opened her college career by scoring 27 points vs. Northern Iowa on Nov. 25, 2020, it turned out to be a glimpse of what was to come. The Des Moines native has gone on to average 28.2 points over four spectacular seasons, putting her in position to become the all-time leading scorer in NCAA college basketball history.
“She’s not just a high-powered scoring machine, she’s a flat-out hooper,” said Christy Winters-Scott, the lead analyst at the Big Ten Network.
USA TODAY Sports spoke to Steph Curry, Maya Moore, Kim Mulkey, Gus Johnson and others about what makes Iowa’s Caitlin Clark so special. — Lindsay Schnell
At least the NFL gave us a dry run for how to find tonight’s game!
NBC put the wild-card game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Miami Dolphins on Peacock last month, to no shortage of outrage from NFL fans. But as NBC tries to drive consumers to its streaming platform, especially ahead of this summer’s Paris Olympics, when a lot of the coverage will be on Peacock, it needs some big games to entice them.
And it doesn’t get bigger than Caitlin Clark breaking Kelsey Plum’s all-time NCAA women’s scoring record.
For example, here’s the line to get into the gym tonight:
— Nancy Armour
Is history about to repeat itself?
Last season as a 2 seed, Iowa and Clark made it all the way to the college basketball promised land, eventually falling to LSU in the national championship.
Thursday, about 90 minutes before Iowa tipped vs. Michigan, the NCAA selection committee revealed its first top 16 rankings and Iowa was No. 5 overall, which would mean the Hawkeyes would be the top No. 2 seed if the NCAA bracket came out tomorrow.
Last year, Iowa was the No. 2 seed in its region; Stanford was the No. 1 seed, but got upset at home in the round of 32. Iowa wound up beating fifth-seeded Louisville in the Elite Eight to advance to the Final Four.
The demand to see Caitlin Clark this season has been high, but as she goes for the NCAA women’s scoring record Thursday, ticket prices to see the historic achievement are reaching near-record levels.
Tickets to see No. 4 Iowa host Michigan on Thursday night have an average purchase price of $387, which is the second-most expensive women’s basketball game of all-time − college or WNBA − according to TickPick. But the average purchase price in the past week has been $521, showing how much the demand has risen as Clark nears the record.
The get-in price for the game is $426 as of Tuesday afternoon. On StubHub, courtside tickets could be purchased for $13,669 each with fees. — Jordan Mendoza
Iowa’s Caitlin Clark fell just eight points short Sunday afternoon of the NCAA women’s scoring record as the Hawkeyes were upset by Nebraska 82-79.
The 22-year-old senior phenom has averaged 32.1 points this season, but she’s averaged nearly 34 points in her last five games. At that pace, Clark could surpass Kelsey Plum’s mark of 3,527 career points in the first quarter Thursday.
Why all the excitement? The Hawkeye phenom’s mark on all NCAA basketball could ultimately be even bigger. She is 147 points shy of Pete Maravich’s all-time scoring record, which has stood for five decades. — Jim Sergent
What is Caitlin Clark’s highest-scoring game?
Clark’s highest-scoring game came when she hung 45 points on Ohio State on Jan. 21. Clark shot 12-for-25, including 7-for-18 from 3. She also grabbed three rebounds and handed out seven assists in the 100-92 loss.
See how many other college players have scored more than 3,000 points here.
One of the most impressive parts of Clark’s climb to the top of the scoring mountain is how, despite every opposing team keying in on her, she has scored more each season. Below is an illustrated look at how much Clark has scored each season, and exactly how she did it.
Iowa’s schedule the rest of the season:
- Thursday, Feb. 22 at Indiana, 8 p.m. ET on Peacock
- Sunday, Feb. 25 vs. Illinois, 1 p.m. ET on FS1
- Wednesday, Feb. 28 at Minnesota, 9 p.m. ET on Peacock
- Sunday, March 3 vs. Ohio State, 1 p.m. on Fox
- March 6-10, Big Ten Tournament in Minneapolis, times and TV vary
Yes … but she could come back next year and be a super senior if she wants. Though she’s projected to be the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA draft, she could return to Iowa City next season. Because Clark was a freshman in the 2020-21 season, she has a COVID year (basically, that season didn’t count toward anyone’s eligibility).
Clark is 6-foot. Big guards have become more common in women’s basketball the last decade or so, and Clark’s size absolutely helps her because she’s able to see over defenders on the break and get vertical separation when she goes up for a shot. Also of note: Clark worked hard last summer to put on eight pounds of muscle and that has made a huge difference in her game, particularly when she drives to the rim.
Christine Lake is a sports fanatic who lives and breathes athletics. With an extensive background in sports journalism, he covers everything from major league championships to grassroots sports events. When she’s not on the field or at the stadium, you’ll find Christine coaching youth sports teams.
