Her-story: Caitlin Clark breaks the NCAA scoring record, Hawkeyes roll past Michigan

Caitlin. Clark. The 22-year old senior from West Des Moines, Iowa is now, the NCAA all-time leading scorer in women’s basketball. There isn’t a script writer in the entire world that could have put together a better script for the moment. Transition three-pointer, from the logo? Are you kidding me? Of course that’s how she surpassed former Washington guard Kelsey Plum. Anything else would have been boring. Not really, but it had to be a logo three.

“I kind of stepped back to my left a little bit and was able to get it off and it went in and then celebrated. I honestly thought Coach Bluder was going to call the timeout before I had to go play defense,” said Caitlin Clark with a laugh. “You’ll knew I was going to shoot a logo three for the record.”

Coming into the game, Caitlin needed just eight points to break the record, so the soldout of 15,000+ at Carver-Hawkeye Arena began the game on the edge of their seats. It didn’t take long for them to witness history. Clark got to the hoop for a basket in the lane on the first possession of the game and then knocked down a three-pointer on the second possession of the game. Just 39 seconds into the game and she was within three points of the record. After a couple of empty possessions, Caitlin got the ball in transition off of a Michigan missed shot and she let a one fly from the middle of the Medicom Court logo.

“Bang” to quote Mike Breen.

“It was perfect, it was absolutely perfect for her to go over and reach this record with a logo three,” said Lisa Bluder. “I was determined to call that timeout and just let her enjoy it and we really didn’t talk in the timeout. I just wanted her to have some space to think about what she’d accomplished.”

History by Caitlin Clark! pic.twitter.com/NbIFf6el0w

— Tom Kakert (@HawkeyeReport) February 16, 2024

After a timeout from Lisa Bluder to allow the coaching staff, the players and everyone else inside the soak in what had just happened, the rest of the game ensued. The rest of the first quarter was dominated by Caitlin Clark. Not only social media (that’s still ongoing), but on the court as well.

She was beyond locked in. In the opening ten minutes, Clark put up 23 points on 8/10 shooting, including five three-pointers. She also had four assists. It’s the second-most points scored in a quarter by a Hawkeye in school history, only trailing herself when she did it at Michigan back in 2022. Iowa took a 33-22 lead into the second quarter.

“Warming up (before the game), my shot just felt good,” said Clark. “I knew it was going to be one of those nights and I played with a little bit more pep in my step. That’s what this team needed coming off of a loss.”

Despite all the fanfare surrounding the game, the Wolverines battled the Hawkeyes for the entire first half. Jordan Hobbs led the way with 14 points and Michigan trailed just 40-36 with 5:57 to go in the second quarter. Iowa got a pair of three-pointers from Gabbie Marshall to help them close the half on a 13-5 run and go into the locker room with a 53-41 lead. Caitlin went into the break with 28 points and eight assists.

“I think we were a force tonight that nobody was going to stop, especially coming off of a loss,” said Bluder.

The Hawkeyes were an unstoppable force. Michigan came into the game ranked as the top scoring defense in the Big Ten, but they were 1-4 when their opponents scored 75+ points. Iowa had 53 points at the break and showed no signs of slowing down.

Right out of the break, the lead grew. Molly Davis and Caitlin Clark each hit three-pointers to extend the lead to 59-41. In the late stages of the third quarter, Taylor McCabe and Kate Martin each knocked down threes to make it 77-57. Everything was going right for the Hawkeyes on a historic night. They were even able to handle the box-and-1 defense that gave them fits in Lincoln on Sunday.

“We didn’t freak out. We just did us and what we’ve worked on all week and we made some tough shots,” said Clark. “Our lead grew when they went to the box-and-1 and I think that shows the area of growth. We took a stride and got better and I’m so proud of our team.”

In the fourth quarter, Caitlin zeroed in on the Carver-Hawkeye Arena scoring record. After all, it had stood for almost two full home games, men’s or women’s, so it was time for it to be broken. Syd Affolter found Clark on the perimeter and she knocked down her ninth three-pointer of the game. 49 points. New arena scoring record.

“She said she passed the torch to me, but Hannah will break my record. She better break my record playing here for another couple of years,” said Clark. “I was so happy for her the other night and I’m perfectly fine with Hannah going out and scoring 50 next (home) game.”

On the historic night, Caitlin Clark finished with a career-high 49 points, including nine three-pointers, as well as 13 assists and five rebounds. Kate Martin came in a distant second in scoring, finishing with 20 points. Hannah Stuelke added 13 points and five rebounds.

On the night, the Iowa offense was pretty darn efficient. They shot 34/64 (53.1%) from the floor, including 18/35 (51.4%) from three-point range. They turned 12 Michigan turnovers into 26 points and outscored the Wolverines in transition 25-7.

Up Next, the Hawkeyes will go on the road to face the #14 Indiana Hoosiers in Bloomington on February 22nd. Tipoff is set for 7:00pm CT and the game will be streamed on Peacock.