For perhaps the final time, the Caitlin Clark show comes to Lincoln for a game against Nebraska — and this time, the Iowa senior point guard could set the NCAA career scoring record for women’s basketball.
Here are 22 things to know about No. 22.
1. Clark is 39 points from breaking Kelsey Plum’s NCAA career scoring record (3,527) set from 2013-17 for Washington. Clark is No. 2 on the career list, having passed Kelsey Mitchell (Ohio State), Jackie Stiles (Missouri State) and Brittney Griner (Baylor) this season.
2. This season, Clark leads the country in scoring (32.2 per game), assists (8.2) and 3-pointers per game (5.2).
3. Clark is from West Des Moines, Iowa, the same city as Nebraska volleyball All-American outside hitter Madi Kubik. Clark went to Dowling Catholic, while Kubik attended Valley. Clark was the No. 4 recruit in her class, according to ESPN.
4. Clark has a few high school state records, including the 5A record for most points in a game (60) and most 3-pointers in a game (13).
5. She is in her fourth college season after starting her career during the pandemic-altered season when full crowds were not allowed. Clark could return for a fifth college season but may also begin her professional basketball career.
6. Clark has won all eight games she’s played against Nebraska, scoring 30, 31, 31, 33 35, 38, 39 and 41 points. In those games, she has shot 35-for-80 on 3-pointers and has 61 assists.
7. Clark can get off a 3-point shot quickly and makes many of them with a hand in her face. When Nebraska and Iowa played two weeks ago, the Huskers had a small lead late in the first half. Then Clark hit 7 of 9 3-pointers.
8. Clark has scored 20-plus points in 109-of-124 career games. She’s scored at least 26 in each of the past 15 games. Her career average on field goals is 46.8%.
9. She’s on a current streak of 26 consecutive made free throws over four games. She ranks 39th nationally in free-throw percentage (86.1%).
10. In AAU basketball, Clark and former Nebraska women’s basketball player Sam Haiby from Minnesota played against each other at least five times. Clark was playing up an age group. “Same as she is now — always able to score whenever she wants,” Haiby said.
11. Over the last 25 seasons, nobody has had more 30-point games in men’s or women’s college basketball than Clark (52). She’s made at least one 3-pointer in an NCAA-best 82 consecutive games.
12. Last season, in Iowa’s 97-83 NCAA Elite Eight win against Louisville, Clark produced the first 40-point triple-double in men’s or women’s NCAA Tournament history (41 points, 12 assists, 10 rebounds).
13. Clark is just the second player to score 40 points or more in a women’s NCAA Final Four game (41 against South Carolina in the 2023 national semifinals).
14. Since 2020-21, Clark has registered four 40-point performances against Top 10 teams, the only player to do so.
15. While leading Iowa to its first-ever national championship game appearance last season, Clark had 191 points and 60 assists during six tournament games.
16. Clark is likely the biggest draw in the sport’s history, both in arenas and on TV. Last year’s national championship game against LSU got about 10 million TV viewers. And Iowa’s regular season game against Ohio State last month averaged 1.93 million viewers on NBC. Iowa’s game on Thursday against Penn State averaged 657,000 TV viewers, making it the most-watched women’s athletic event in Big Ten Network history.
17. Clark recorded her 15th career triple-double against Purdue on Jan. 10 and joins Sabrina Ionescu (Oregon) as the only players in Division I women’s basketball history to record a triple-double in four different seasons.
18. As a sophomore, Clark was the first NCAA Division I player to lead the country in points (27.0) and assists (8.0) in the same season.
19. In high school, Clark also started on the varsity soccer team during her first two years, and that’s something you can see when you watch her play. She can play really fast if she wants while weaving her way up the court, or she can wait for a play to develop before firing a pass to an open teammate. Her conditioning is excellent, with her sometimes only coming out of the game near the end of the quarters.
20. Clark has earned first-team All-American honors from at least one organization in each of her first three seasons.
21. Clark’s scoring average has improved in each of her four seasons — 26.6; 27.0; 27.8; 32.2.
22. One of Clark’s favorite arenas to play in on the road is Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, where several family members can attend. She the holds Pinnacle Bank Arena record for points in a women’s game (39).