Iowa's Caitlin Clark Breaks All-Time Leading Scorer Record, Increases NIL Earnings & Is Congratulated by LSU's Angel Reese

Caitlin Clark. Photo/Instagram

Iowa Hawkeye's Caitlin Clark recently became the all-time leading NCAA women's basketball scorer, surpassing former NCAA player Kelsey Plum. "She is 50 points away from equaling Pete "Pistol Pete" Maravich's NCAA record across men's and women's basketball and 51 points from breaking that record. Maravich scored 3,667 points in his time at LSU in the late 60s and early 1970s," according to Yahoo. 

Despite Iowa's upset in 2023, when they lost the NCAA championship game to LSU, Clark has made even more impressive strides this season. Clark has a lot to do with Iowa's significant ticket sales spike. According to The Des Moines Register, the Iowa vs. Ohio State game had the highest get-in price in women's college basketball history, with prices going as high as $3,853. The average ticket sold for $577. 

Clark's net worth has also greatly increased. According to CNN Business, LSU stars Angel Reese and Flau'jae Johnson have NIL valuations above $1 million, according to On3's NIL ranking. After signing with Gatorade, Nike, State Farm, and other companies, the Clark's value is reportedly lower than the two LSU stars, around $818,000. According to Women's Health, Angel ranked fifth for most (Name, Image, and Likeness) NIL deals overall and was the second-highest deal-making female athlete behind softball player Lauren Burke. 

Yet, the Iowa point guard's merchandise is also selling out at a record-breaking amount. Fanatics told CNN it sold more Clark-branded merchandise "than any other individual men's or women's NIL-era college athlete across all sports since 2022" in less than 24 hours after she broke the record." In 2023, the Iowa Hawkeye's point guard said she was still deciding whether she'd stay for a fifth year, yet that will have little bearing on if the NCAA's leading scorer will go to the WNBA.

Despite the media hype that aimed to pit Clark and Reese against each other following the 2023 NCAA Championship game, Iowa's number 22 was congratulated by LSU's Angel Reese and many others for this season's success. Angel posted on X, "Congratulations @CaitlinClark22 KEEP BREAKING RECORDS & MAKING HER-STORY!" Yet, former WNBA star, Sheryl Swoopes was scrutinized after making comments about Clark. While on former NBA player Gilbert Arenas' show, Swoopes said “Will Caitlin Clark be a good pro? Absolutely. Will Caitlin Clark come into the WNBA and do what she’s doing right now immediately? Absolutely not. Not going to happen,” she said. Swoopes reportedly reached out to the NCAA star to apologize.

This is Clark's second consecutive year ranked as number 1 in the NCAA for women's basketball.

To subscribe to Volume 82, click the link. To follow our Instagram, click here; for TikTok, click here!