Iowa women’s basketball star Caitlin Clark makes history with 3,000 career points in win over rivals Iowa State
By Sam Joseph, CNN
(CNN) — Caitlin Clark had a game-high 35 points on her way to an unprecedented achievement as her Iowa Hawkeyes took down their in-state rivals, the Iowa State Cyclones, 67-58 on Wednesday.
The reigning consensus national player of the year registered her 3,000th career point on the night, making her the 15th player in NCAA Division I women’s basketball history to accomplish the feat.
Clark’s scoring outburst also meant that she entered uncharted territory. She is the only player in Division I men’s or women’s basketball history with 3,000+ points, 750+ rebounds and 750+ assists.
The 21-year-old also had nine rebounds and five assists on the night and credited her coach Lisa Bluder for putting her in a position to be able to reach the milestone.
“She lets me be me and that’s all you can ask for a coach, but she supports me more as a person and my teammates let me thrive,” Clark told ESPN after the game. “Fans support us like no other and I’m just lucky. I’m really lucky and fortunate.
“I’m trying to soak in every single second and do whatever I can to put a smile on people’s faces.”
Clark, an Iowa native, now has 3,013 points in her college career and sits 514 points behind Kelsey Plum’s NCAA women’s record of 3,527. Clark might break the record this season if she continues her red-hot scoring pace of 29.6 points per game.
The All-American also made six three-pointers during a game that was tight throughout. There were 12 lead changes in the matchup and nine ties.
The sides entered the half-time break locked at 34-34 in a heated battle between the two state rivals. Iowa led 48-45 after a third quarter in which Clark scored all 14 of its points.
The Cyclones went on an 8-0 run in the fourth to snatch a late lead but saw the win slip away when they were outscored by the Hawkeyes 13-3 in the final four minutes of the game.
“We knew it was going to be a hard-fought game,” Iowa coach Bluder said after the final buzzer. “They slowed the ball down and did a good job at that, but our defense in the second half was really good, especially in the fourth quarter after they took the lead. Half-time, we talked about three-point defense, and they didn’t have a single three in the second half.”
The fourth-ranked Hawkeyes have had a blistering start to the season and improve to 9-1, while the Cyclones drop to .500 at 4-4.
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