Should Caitlin Clark break the scoring record on Sunday? It truly is a testament to just how good Caitlin Clark is that this is even a valid question. The Iowa point guard is 39 points away from breaking the all-time NCAA women’s basketball scoring record of 3,527 points.
The current mark was set by Kelsey Plum back in 2017. Now, heading into a Big Ten clash with Nebraska, Clark has the chance to make history.
She surely has the capability to break the record right now if she’s having a good game on Sunday. She has already eclipsed the 40-point mark three times this season. The last time she played the Cornhuskers, she scored 38 points which is pretty dang close. Should Sunday be the big day, though? Lindsay Schnell of USA TODAY Sports convincingly declares that Clark should not.
She’s (Clark) also the second-leading scorer in NCAA women’s basketball history … and she should stay that for another week.
Yes, I’m asking the reigning national player of the year, pretty please, to just be average for one game. – Schnell, USA TODAY Sports.
Schnell pleads Clark not to break the record on Super Bowl Sunday, and the reasoning is pretty understandable. Clark has done a ton to grow the game of women’s basketball. From sold out arenas to major media coverage, women’s collegiate ball is flourishing like never before.
For as big of a moment as her breaking the all-time record would be, while still on the hunt to overtake “Pistol” Pete as the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer, it would definitely be overshadowed by the Super Bowl. It is still the biggest sporting event of the year for Americans.
Quite honestly, this might not even be the biggest reason to want Clark to hold off on breaking the record though as Lisa Bluder explains.
“I would rather have her break it at home,” Bluder admitted after Iowa’s win over Penn State. “I think our Carver-Hawkeye fans deserve that. But believe me, our No. 1 priority will be to win the game at Nebraska.”
That right there is what makes this all so difficult. Iowa is playing to win. At the end of the day, record or not, that’s what Clark and the rest of her team care about the most. While she is a fantastic passer, we all know that Iowa is at their best when she is shooting the basketball. That’s how they win.
While it would be really nice to see Clark break the record in front of a capacity crowd at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, I know that she will not let that stop her on Sunday. Whether she scores 39 or 29, Clark is going to do her best to help earn a victory for her teammates and fan base around her.
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