Caitlin Clark needed 18 points during Sunday's game against No. 2-ranked Ohio State to surpass Pete Maravich's all-time NCAA scoring record. She reached that mark after draining two free throws before the first half concluded.
The most impressive part of the history-making moment was how stoic Clark seemed upon setting the record. Of course, she — and everybody else in attendance or elsewhere watching Iowa's 93-83 win Sunday — knew this moment was inevitable.
Still, Clark didn't even acknowledge the roaring crowd after nailing her pair of free throws. She instead elected to set up her defense for the second quarter's last 0.3 seconds.
While this present-moment immersion might seem trivial, it was the first sign of a message that Clark is clearly keen to send opponents while still at Iowa: Individual records and success aside, Clark and her Iowa squad are focused on chasing a championship.
After the half ended, Clark was more willing to reflect on her journey to this record-breaking moment — although she also doubled down on the fact that she's far from finished.
After thanking her teammates and coaches, Clark went on to address the fans in attendance: "I don't know if you guys realize what you're doing for women's basketball and women's sports in general, but you're changing it. You're helping us change it.
"This is special. I don't know if you guys realize what you're doing for women's basketball and women's sports, in general."
Caitlin Clark set another major record, and then delivered a heartfelt senior day speech.@CaitlinClark22 x @IowaWBB pic.twitter.com/Dz32vyRiQZ
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) March 4, 2024
"So seriously, from the bottom of my heart, from all of us, we thank you so much, and I just feel really grateful to be here and have put on an Iowa jersey for four years. But like coach [Lisa] Bluder and Kate [Martin] said, there's still so much fun to have, and we're not done."
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Despite some unexpected losses this season, Sunday's win against an elite Ohio State squad proved that Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes have to be considered among the favorites to win a national championship this season. When Clark is on her game — which is almost always — few teams can match Iowa's scoring output.
Although she has already made her decision to leave Iowa for the 2024 WNBA Draft after this season, Clark won't be completely content with her college career without helping bring her Hawkeyes a championship trophy.
In other words: Watch out.
