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Iowa Hawkeyes point guard Caitlin Clark not only became a lot of fans’ new favorite female basketball player thanks to her run through the NCAA tournament, she became a lot of fans’ favorite player period.
There are several reasons why 9.9 million people tuned in to watch Iowa take on LSU in the National Championship and Clark was as big of a reason as any.
The game was the most-viewed women’s college basketball game and ESPN’s most-viewed college basketball game (men’s or women’s) ever.
Caitlin Clark averaged 31.8 points, 10 assists and 5.2 rebounds per game during the tournament and set numerous records along the way including most three-pointers, most assists, most points and becoming the only player in NCAA women’s tournament history to record back-to-back 40-point games.
None of this, however, surprised people who had been following Caitlin Clark since her youth basketball days.
The 2023 National Player of the Year first started playing basketball at age five as the only girl on a boys youth team.
In sixth grade, Clark joined the AAU team All Iowa Attack and was playing against high school seniors by eighth grade.
And as some newly resurfaced highlight videos of Caitlin Clark from eighth grade easily attest, the 2020 Iowa Miss Basketball has been a problem for opponents for quite some time now.
@justwomenssports Caitlin Clark in 8th grade 😲 #basketball #collegebasketball #caitlinclark #iowa 🎥: @Courtside Films ♬ original sound – Just Women’s Sports
So far, during her three years at Iowa, Clark is averaging 27.2 points, 8.0 assists, and 7.0 rebounds per game.
All of which is pretty standard stuff for her.
As a high school sophomore she averaged 27.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.3 steals per game.
Clark followed that up with seasons of 32.6 points per game and 33.4 points per game in her junior and senior seasons.
“Caitlin Clark is truly one of the best players to have ever come out of Iowa,” said Scott DeJong, head coach at Ankeny Centennial High in Iowa, after Clark won the Gatorade Iowa Player of the Year Award. “She can do everything on the court. I’ve seen many great players over my 35-year career, but she affects winning more than anyone I’ve seen.”