With Senior Day, Pete Maravich's record in sight, Caitlin Clark has one goal — win
On the night Caitlin Clark set the NCAA Division I women's all-time scoring record, the Iowa superstar felt relief.
With that record — previously held by Kelsey Plum — hanging over her head all season, it was difficult to focus on anything else. And all Clark wanted to do was think about winning as many games as possible, having fun with her teammates, getting back to the national championship, and winning it.
"It was nice to get it done fairly quickly so we could move on and focus on winning the basketball game," Clark said Feb. 15 after Iowa beat Michigan 106-89 behind her 49 points and 13 assists. Entering that matchup, Clark needed just eight points to break the record, which she scored less than three minutes into the game.
As March arrives, Clark and the No. 6-ranked Hawkeyes hope to make a national title run. But there are a few more Clark-centric storylines that are taking center stage.
First, there's Iowa Senior Day on Sunday, which means Clark will be honored alongside Kate Martin, Gabbie Marshall and Molly Davis. Clark, who is expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA Draft this April, officially announced her intent to turn pro after this season Thursday. This means she will forgo an extra COVID season.
Clark is not the kind of person who wants a personal storyline to overshadow her teammates on their special day, so making this decision public three days beforehand was intentional. Sunday is simultaneously a massive game between Iowa and No. 2 Ohio State (watch at 1 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app).
The Buckeyes just clinched the Big Ten regular-season title and beat the Hawkeyes in their first meeting in Columbus on Jan. 21, meaning Iowa certainly doesn't want to get swept on Senior Day. Plus, the conference foes have a strong chance of meeting in the Big Ten Tournament.
The other highly anticipated moment everybody is excited to witness Sunday? Clark overtaking Pete Maravich for the NCAA's overall scoring record. Maravich scored 3,667 points for LSU from 1967-70, and Clark only needs 18 points to sit alone at the top.
"Pete's record, that's getting closer and closer," Clark said after recording her 17th career triple-double in a 108-60 victory over Minnesota on Wednesday. "I vividly remember even people in high school coming up to me and talking about Pete and [saying], ‘You need to watch him on YouTube.'
"My first goal is focusing on Ohio State, but it's super special just to be in the same realm as a lot of these really talented players that have done a lot for just basketball in general."
On her way to what was her 17th 30-point performance vs. the Golden Gophers, Clark passed Lynette Woodard's major college women's mark of 3,649 points, which was set during the AIAW era, before the NCAA took over governance of women's sports. Clark also set the women's NCAA single-season record for 3-pointers with 156, a number that will continue to grow before her year is over.
With all the mind-bending stats on her résumé, Clark remains level-headed. She knows how to handle the spotlight and is always quick to include her teammates in it.
For example, after she broke Plum's record two weeks ago, Clark made sure to highlight the fact that sophomore Hannah Stuelke will probably break her scoring record one day because "you just want to see your teammates succeed," Clark said. That same night, she thanked her fellow seniors Martin, Marshall and Davis, saying she is "just lucky that my teammates let me be me and I wouldn't be where I am if it wasn't for them."
"They've given so much to this program and need to be celebrated too, and they don't always get the light to shine really bright on them, and they should because I'm nowhere without those three, and I think that's really important," Clark continued. "And going forward, it's all Iowa basketball and that's what it should be."
"I'm just proud of her" – Caitlin Clark on Hannah Stuelke's 47-point game against Penn State
Of course, it hasn't just been about Iowa basketball with all the other history Clark has been making. But that's OK. The Hawkeyes have proven time and again, with their 25-4 record and holding onto their top-10 ranking all season, that they can multitask.
"It's been a little bit of a distraction," Iowa coach Lisa Bluder said after Clark skipped past Plum, "but you want these kinds of distractions for your team."
Perhaps after Sunday, once the Clark-Maravich comparisons have come and gone, Iowa can solely think about basketball. Ohio State will provide an important litmus test for where this team stands heading into this month's madness.
Because while the Hawkeyes are among the favorites to win the Big Ten Tournament, the NCAA Tournament will be a different beast. Potential matchups down the road against teams such as South Carolina, Texas, Virginia Tech, USC, UConn, or a national championship rematch vs. LSU loom.
It has been a once-in-a-lifetime kind of season for Clark. She has lured more fans to the women's game. Sunday's showdown vs. Ohio State is set to be the most expensive ticket ever for a women's college basketball game, with the most expensive seat coming in at $5,956 (including fees) via Vivid Seats.
Clark understands the enormity of her impact and embraces it. But at the end of the day — individual accolades and remarkable achievements aside — all she wants to do is win.
Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of "Strong Like a Woman," published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her on Twitter @LakenLitman.
Read more:
- Iowa standout Caitlin Clark declares for 2024 WNBA Draft
- Caitlin Clark moves past Lynette Woodard for major college women's scoring record
- Caitlin Clark scoring record tracker: Will she pass Pete Maravich?
- 'It's unimaginable': Caitlin Clark's historic night and its impact on women's sports
- Tom Brady, Alex Morgan and more stars react to Caitlin Clark setting scoring record
- Caitlin Clark's record-setting college career by the numbers
Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of "Strong Like a Woman," published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her on Twitter @LakenLitman.
