Caitlin Clark’s fever has spread throughout the country, with people lined up to see her live. The Iowa guard has been putting up impressive numbers in each one of her games this season to finish her college basketball run.
Clark is undoubtedly one of the best college basketball players. From the hundreds of three-pointers and mind-boggling assists she has made over her career, it isn’t hard to see why Caitlin Clark has captured the hearts of so many fans.
On multiple occasions, number twenty-two on Iowa has made history by smashing record after record. On February 15, Clark passed Kelsey Plum’s 3,527 career points and set the record for all-time scoring in Division 1 women’s college basketball. The guard broke the record after hitting a three-point shot from the logo. Later, in that game against Michigan, Clark broke her career-high amount of points in a game, scoring 49, three more than her previous record. To commemorate Caitlin Clark breaking the scoring record, Iowa put a decal featuring the number 22 and Clark on the floor of the Carver-Hawkeye Arena right where she hit the shot (USA Today).
With a few records under her belt, Clark didn’t stop there. On March 3, Clark scored the remaining eighteen points she needed to reach Pete Maravich’s NCAA all-time scoring record of 3,667. The scene was set up perfectly: home court, Senior Night, and a battle against Ohio State, the number two team in the country at the time. In the last seconds of the second quarter, Clark hit two free throws, officially making her the NCAA men’s and women’s all-time scoring leader (MSNBC).
On leap day, three days before the Senior Night match, Caitlin Clark announced she would head to the WNBA after this season. Since Clark played in the 2019-20 season, the NCAA granted players an extra year of eligibility if they chose to because of the pandemic. This means players could play an additional year of college basketball (MSNBC).
As March Madness comes around, it is exciting to see how Caitlin Clark and Iowa compete against the tough teams in their bracket, especially since Clark is entering the WNBA draft after this. Nevertheless, whether Clark wins it all or not, she is still cemented as one of this generation’s most impactful college athletes. Madison Chou (11), an avid fan of Clark and a basketball player, expresses, “Caitlin Clark is so inspirational because she has broken so many records, and she is changing the face of women’s basketball. She greatly influences my basketball game and is fun to watch because she shoots so many three-pointers using the logo.” Caitlin Clark’s effect has spread throughout the game of basketball and young basketball players who look up to her. It will be exciting to see how Clark does in the future as she transitions into more significant challenges.
