Iowa’s Caitlin Clark broke a 54-year-old scoring record on Sunday, becoming the all-time NCAA scoring leader on a pair of free throws following a technical foul.
The 6-foot star passed Pistol Pete Maravich’s record for the most points scored by a Division I basketball player, men’s or women’s.
Clark entered the game in Iowa City needing 18 points to pass Maravich’s total of 3,667, amassed in just 83 games over three seasons at LSU (1967-70). She finished with 35 to run her total to 3,685 in 130 games.
Pearl Moore, who played at Francis Marion from 1975 to 1979, holds the AIAW small-college women’s record with 3,884 points. But in terms of major college/Division I men or women, Clark now stands alone.
Clark announced last week she would enter the 2024 WNBA draft and skip the fifth year of eligibility available to athletes who competed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The fall of Maravich’s record comes with scrutiny over changes to the game since 1970.
There was no shot clock or 3-point line in Maravich’s era at LSU (1967-1970). The 3-point line was adopted in 1986.
Maravich’s career was also before freshman eligibility in college sports, so he was limited to 83 games over his three seasons.