Women's Top 25 roundup: Caitlin Clark sets record, No. 4 Iowa wins

 

[February 16, 2024]  Caitlin Clark etched her name into the history books Thursday night, scoring a school-record 49 points and setting the all-time NCAA Division I career scoring record for women's college basketball as No. 4 Iowa beat Michigan 106-89 in Iowa City.

Clark entered the game with 3,520 points, just eight points shy of passing the mark set by former Washington guard Kelsey Plum. Clark scored Iowa's first eight points, beginning the game sinking a layup, then swishing a 3-pointer.

Then, at the 7:48 mark in the first quarter, Clark crossed halfcourt with a defender on her and pulled up several feet from the 3-point line on the left wing, nearly at the midcourt Hawkeye logo, and fired. The shot sank and Clark took sole possession of the record.

It was the 126th career game for Clark, a 22-year-old senior from West Des Moines, Iowa. Clark reached and broke the scoring record in 13 more games than Plum played in for Washington from 2013-17. The 49 points broke the Iowa women's record of 48 set by Megan Gustafson against Minnesota in 2018.

Clark also had 13 assists for Iowa (23-3, 12-2 Big Ten), while Kate Martin scored 20 points and Hannah Stuelke added 13.

The Wolverines (16-10, 7-7) were paced by 16 points and five rebounds from Jordan Hobbs.

No. 1 South Carolina 66, Tennessee 55

Kamilla Cardoso bundled 18 points with 10 rebounds in her return to the lineup as the Gamecocks remained the only undefeated team in Division I by pulling away late from the Lady Volunteers on Thursday in Knoxville, Tenn.

Cardoso, who missed South Carolina's prior two games while competing with the Brazilian national team in an Olympic qualifying tournament, shot 8-for-15 from the field and added three blocks. Ashlyn Watkins paired 14 points with 10 boards, while Raven Johnson complemented her five assists with a game-high 15 rebounds for the Gamecocks (24-0, 11-0 Southeastern Conference) in their 42nd straight SEC win.

Rickea Jackson finished with a team-high 19 points but went scoreless in the fourth quarter for Tennessee (15-9, 8-4). Sara Puckett chipped in 15 points and Jasmine Powell tallied 12 points and eight boards. Jewel Spear, the Lady Volunteers' second-leading scorer (13.3 points per game), was kept off the scoreboard, missing all eight of her field-goal attempts.

South Carolina trailed by three at halftime and entered the fourth quarter tied at 48 before holding Tennessee without a basket for the first five minutes of the final period.

Watkins' layup to open the fourth quarter put the Gamecocks up for good, and Bree Hall's second-chance 3-pointer pushed South Carolina's lead to 57-49 with 5:21 to play. Puckett ended the Lady Volunteers' field-goal drought to cut the deficit to six before Cardoso scored the game's next five points to sew up the Gamecocks' win.

No. 6 North Carolina State 59, No. 16 Notre Dame 43

River Baldwin paired 14 points with 10 rebounds as the Wolfpack secured their sixth win over a ranked opponent this season by stifling the Fighting Irish in South Bend, Ind.

NC State (22-3, 10-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) held Notre Dame, which entered Thursday leading the conference in scoring (83 points per game) and field-goal percentage (46.5), to its lowest totals in both categories.

The Fighting Irish (18-6, 8-5) shot 26.9 percent from the field and 16.7 percent from 3-point range. Freshman guard Hannah Hidalgo (25.1 points per game, third in Division I) struggled to a season-low 10 points on 4-of-19 shooting for Notre Dame.

Madison Hayes powered the Wolfpack with 16 points, while Aziaha James had 11 and Saniya Rivers added 10 to go along with her 10 rebounds. NC State used a 14-0 run to lead 19-7 after the first quarter and never trailed. Maddy Westbeld paced the Fighting Irish with 14 points and Sonia Citron tacked on 13.

No. 12 Virginia Tech 61, Duke 56

Elizabeth Kitley carried the Hokies past the Blue Devils with a season-high 34 points to go along with 12 rebounds in the teams' ACC clash in Blacksburg, Va.

Kitley made 13 of 17 field-goal attempts and tallied her lone assist of the game when she found Georgia Amoore at the top of the key for a vital 3-pointer that boosted Virginia Tech (21-4, 12-2 ACC) ahead 59-53 with 20 seconds left. Amoore managed 13 points despite shooting 4-of-21 from the field and committing six turnovers. Matilda Ekh chipped in 11 points in the Hokies' eighth straight win.

Ashlon Jackson's 18 points led Duke (16-8, 8-5), which couldn't build on its 63-46 win over then-No. 14 Virginia Tech Jan. 18 in Durham, N.C. Reigan Richardson hit for 11 points, as did Oluchi Okananwa, who also grabbed 11 rebounds. The Blue Devils were outscored 19-14 in the final quarter in a loss that kicks off a string of four straight games against ranked opponents.

No. 17 Gonzaga 96, Saint Mary's 68

Six players scored in double figures for the Bulldogs, who locked down on defense in the second quarter to ignite their rout of the host Gaels in Moraga, Calif.

Brynna Maxwell and Kaylynne Truong led Gonzaga (25-2, 12-0 West Coast Conference) with 20 points apiece. Maud Huijbens added 15 off the bench, Eliza Hollingsworth posted 12, Kayleigh Truong delivered 11 and Yvonne Ejim had 10 points and 10 rebounds as the Bulldogs shot 35-of-70 (50 percent) from the field and held a 37-16 advantage in points off turnovers.

Zeryhia-Lee Aokuso notched 16 points and Emily Foy scored 13 for Saint Mary's (10-15, 3-8), which matched Gonzaga's 15 made 3-pointers but was outscored 25-8 in the second quarter en route to its fourth straight loss. The Bulldogs dominated near the basket in their 19th straight win, outrebounding the Gaels 44-21 and holding a 26-6 advantage in paint points.

No. 18 Louisville 69, Boston College 67

Nina Rickards scored 16 points, including the go-ahead layup in the final seconds, and Olivia Cochran snagged a crucial steal as the Cardinals slipped past the Eagles in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

After Rickards' finish gave Louisville (21-5, 10-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) a two-point lead with 18 seconds left, Cochran intercepted Boston College's inbounds lob into the paint with five seconds remaining.

Cochran finished with 11 points and nine rebounds for the Cardinals, while Kiki Jefferson supplied 14 points to complement Sydney Taylor's 13.

Boston College (11-16, 3-11) lost its eighth straight game despite getting 22 points from Dontavia Waggoner and 16 from T'yana Todd. JoJo Lacey tallied 10 points for the Eagles, who led 17-8 after the first quarter and held a 52-51 edge entering the final period. The teams combined for three made 3-pointers on 15 attempts, while Louisville outscored Boston College 48-36 in the paint.

No. 19 Syracuse 71, Miami 60

Georgia Woolley finished with a season-high 24 points as the Orange held off the Hurricanes' late surge in Coral Gables, Fla.

Woolley made 10-of-19 shots from the floor and snagged three steals for Syracuse (21-4, 11-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) in its fourth straight win. She and Dyaisha Fair drilled consecutive 3-pointers late in the fourth quarter to seal the win after Miami (16-8, 6-7) had whittled its 17-point deficit entering the fourth quarter down to five with 2:53 to play.

Fair had 11 points, six rebounds and five assists for the Orange, who made six 3-pointers compared with the Hurricanes' four.

Shayeann Day-Wilson's 11 points paced Miami, who fell to 13-2 this season at home. Latasha Lattimore added 10 points off the bench, while Ja'Leah Williams, Kyla Oldacre and Jaida Patrick hit for nine points apiece.

The Hurricanes committed 15 turnovers, which Syracuse flipped into 12 points.

--Field Level Media

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