Watch out Pete Maravich: See how close Iowa basketball's Caitlin Clark to scoring record
When Iowa's Caitlin Clark steps onto the basketball court at 9 p.m. ET Wednesday in Minneapolis, Minnesota, two big, round numbers will be staring at her.
The first is 900. That's how many points she's scored this season – almost 200 points more than Southern California freshman JuJu Watkins who is in second.
The other is 50. That's how many points she'll need to tie the NCAA Division I scoring leader Pete Maravich. Clark already surpassed the women's mark set by Kelsey Plum in 2017. Maravich's mark has stood for more than five decades.
How many points does Caitlin Clark need to break the record
With the women's record in the rearview mirror, only two other men's Division I players now stand between Clark and the overall points record. Pete Maravich has held the top spot since 1970 with 3,667 points. It would take a career-high 51 points for Clark to surpass him on Wednesday.
How many points Caitlin Clark has scored
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Clark on pace to surpass Maravich
The Des Moines, Iowa, native is averaging 32.1 points per game this season. If she maintains that pace, she'll pass Maravich's career total in the Hawkeyes' last regular season game on March 3.
Maravich's title could fall even faster on Sunday if Clark puts together another 40-point game against Minnesota. She's had four this season. That includes the 49-point game earlier this month when she surpassed Plum and set a Hawkeye a single-game scoring record. Her dozen career 40-point games are more than any Division I player in the past 25 years.
And even if Clark's pace slows in these final two games of the regular season, she'll have a few games to pass Maravich in the Big Ten Tournament and the NCAA Tournament with the No. 6-ranked Hawkeyes.
In both her last two games, Clark has scored 24 points – eight points below her season average. That includes Sunday's 101-85 win over Illinois where she notched her fifth triple-double of the season and 16th of her career.
Because of the COVID-19 eligibility extensions, Clark could even be back for the 2024-25 season if she chooses and push the career record that much higher.
How many points has Caitlin Clark scored in each game this season?
When is Caitlin Clark's next basketball game
After Wednesday night's game with the Golden Gophers, the Hawkeyes and Clark will host Ohio State at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday to close out their regular season.
Number of college players who have scored more than 3,000 points
Clark joined an exclusive club in early December when she scored her 3,000th career point against Iowa State. Only 26 other players — 16 of them women — in NCAA Division I history have topped 3,000 points.
Not unexpectedly, all but five players crossed the 3,000-point threshold after the NCAA adopted the 3-point shot for the 1986-87 season. Maravich set the current all-time mark in three seasons on LSU's varsity team without a three-point shot.
Clark has led the Big Ten and NCAA in more than scoring
While her scoring prowess has put her on the map for many casual fans, Clark has been the nation's best on many of the top metrics in women's college basketball.
She's the only NCAA player to have a combined 3,000 points, 750 assists and 750 rebounds. Clark made her 1,000th career assist on Feb. 11, joining five other Division I women players with 1,000 or more.