March 3, 2024
Iowa star Caitlin Clark breaks NCAA Division I scoring record, passing LSU’s Pete Maravich
By The Next
Clark became the new record-holder by making two free throws with 0.3 seconds left in the first half
Iowa star guard Caitlin Clark has already shattered several records during her time with the Hawkeyes. She added perhaps the biggest one yet in the final regular-season game of her career, on her Senior Day.
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Clark became the top scorer in NCAA history — men’s or women’s — on Sunday, passing former LSU men’s great Pete Maravich and his previous record of 3,667 points. Clark tied and then passed Maravich by hitting two technical free throws with 0.3 seconds left in the first half, finishing the half with 3,668 points (and 18 in the game so far).
Clark previously passed Washington’s Kelsey Plum for the women’s NCAA scoring record on Feb. 15, resetting the record early in a 23-point first quarter before scoring a career-high 49 points in the win over Michigan.
Clark also passed the all-time Division I record-holder, Lynette Woodard of Kansas, on Wednesday at Minnesota. Woodard scored 3,649 points in her career as a Jayhawk, but because her scoring happened in the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) era, the NCAA did not acknowledge it as the record. Iowa coach Lisa Bluder, however, said she wanted to count it as the record when Clark passed it on Wednesday.
“I want to talk about Caitlin, obviously, because tonight is the night of the real record,” Bluder said after Wednesday’s game. “To me, for the AIAW record that Lynette Woodard held, that was the real one. For some reason, the NCAA does not want to recognize the basketball that was played prior to 1982, and that’s wrong. We played basketball back then. They just don’t want to recognize it. And that hurts the rest of us that were playing at that time. There’s no reason why that should not be the true record.
“And at a school like Iowa that has been so rich in AIAW history, I just want to make sure we acknowledge Lynette’s accomplishments in the game of basketball. But congratulations to Caitlin for being the true basketball leader in points tonight.”
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The next day, Clark announced she would be going to the WNBA Draft after the college season, setting up Sunday as her final regular-season home game (though Iowa is expected to host games in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament later this month). Clark is expected to be drafted by the Indiana Fever with the No. 1 pick in April.
Clark and the No. 6 ranked Hawkeyes are leading 48-39 over No. 2 Ohio State, the regular-season Big Ten champions, at the half on Sunday. The Next’s Angie Holmes is at Sunday’s game and will have more coverage of Clark, her new record and more from Iowa City.
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