Here are five things to know about Caitlin Clark, guard for the Iowa Hawkeyes women’s basketball team.
Caitlin Clark already has the NCAA women's scoring record. Now she is going for the men's.
The 22-year-old point guard is aiming for the NCAA women's basketball scoring record, and she is only eight points away from achieving the feat.
There is a lot more to Clark that fans may now know, such as where the star is from and some of her other incredible achievements.
Ahead of the potentially historical night, here are five things to know about Clark:
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Caitlin Clark has the NCAA women's basketball scoring record
Clark has the NCAA women's scoring record.
Clark, who is averaging 32.8 points per game this season, now has her eyes on a new record. She is looking to hit the men's scoring record.
NCAAB
How many points does Caitlin Clark need to break the record?
Clark is going 99 points away from passing the legendary Pete Maravich (3,667 points) for the NCAA scoring record. If she stays on pace, she will reach the feat in three games.
Iowa currently has four regular season games remaining and sits with 3,569 career points. That would place her to set the men's record against Minnesota on Feb. 28.
Clark is likely to be the 2024 WNBA Draft top pick
Clark has been the projected first pick of the 2024 WNBA Draft for a while now.
The Indiana Fever were the lucky winners of the WNBA Draft Lottery back in December and earned the No. 1 overall pick for the second year in a row. Last year, the Fever selected former South Carolina star Aliyah Boston at No. 1.
As of October 2023, Clark mentioned she hadn't decided if she was going to return for a fifth collegiate season or begin her professional journey. However, she did state that she would treat the 2023-24 season "like this is my last year."
“I’m going to go based off of my gut,” Clark said. “At the end of the day, that’s the biggest thing that I think I should trust. I’m going to know when I need to know if I want to stay or if I want to go.”
Clark is getting busy with NIL partnerships
Clark is loving her numerous NIL deals.
In December, Clark became the fourth collegiate athlete and second women's basketball player to partner with Gatorade. Her other NIL deals include State Farm, Nike and Hy-Vee, among others. She is also partnered with Excel Sports Management, whose women's basketball clients include WNBA stars Napheesa Collier and Arike Ogunbowale.
According to On3, Clark's NIL deals are worth approximately $739,000, marking her the fourth-highest-paid NCAA women's basketball athlete.
Clark competed in boys' leagues growing up
Clark was a star growing up out of Des Moines, Iowa.
She started playing basketball at age 5 and had to compete in boys' recreational leagues because her family could not find girls for her age group.
Growing up, Clark dabbled in different sports, including tennis, soccer, golf, softball, golf and volleyball, before finally committing to basketball. By the age. of 13, Clark was able to compete against girls who were several years older than her.
One of her idols in childhood was Maya Moore of the Minnesota Lynx, the closest WNBA team to her hometown (3 1/2 hours). Clark recollects traveling to those games with her father and was inspired by the level.
Clark is a three-time gold medalist representing the U.S.
Clark has a few gold medals under her belt already.
Her first medal came at the FIBA Americas Under-16 Championship in 2017 Argentina. She also won gold at the FIBA Under-19 World Cup in 2019 and 2021.
Throughout her collegiate career, Clark has earned many accolades. Some of her most prestigious 2023 awards include AP Player of the Year, Honda Sports Award, John R. Wooden Award and Naismith College Player of the Year.
