Caitlin Clark has already set the official NCAA Division I women's basketball scoring record. But for now, the Iowa guard's record comes with an asterisk.
As she and the Hawkeyes prepare to face Minnesota on Wednesday, Clark sits at 3,617 points, trailing only Pete Maravich among all-time Division I basketball players. Maravich had 3,667 in his illustrious career with LSU.
But that's not the reason Clark's mark has an asterisk. There's another star women's basketball player who has a legit claim on the scoring crown.
Here's what you need to know about why Clark's record will come with an asterisk.
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Caitlin Clark scoring record asterisk
The NCAA came into the year saying Kelsey Plum's record of 3,527 points is the most ever by a Division I women's basketball player. Lynette Woodard — and most college basketball aficionados — would beg to differ.
Woodard starred as a guard at Kansas from the 1977-78 season through the 1980-81 campaign. During that time, she averaged 26.3 points per game and made 52.5 percent of shots from the field. She played in a time before the 3-point line or the shot clock was established, meaning she could have wound up with even more points in the modern era.
As it was, Woodard finished her playing career with 3,649 points. So, why is her record, which sits 122 points ahead of Plum, not recognized?
When Woodard played, the NCAA was not the governing body of women's sports. Instead, they were overseen by the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women.
Because of that, the NCAA does not recognize the record. Stats tallied at other schools under non-NCAA associations "are not currently included in NCAA record books, regardless of gender," an NCAA spokesperson said in a statement to the Wall Street Journal. There are exceptions to that rule. School win-loss or coaching win-loss records are accepted even if not under NCAA membership, and athlete records can be included if that player spent at least two of three years with the NCAA, per WSJ.
It wasn't until 1981-82 that the NCAA wound up hosting women's championships, taking teams away from the AIAW and ultimately leading to the governing body's end in June 1982.
“It’s like we became second-class citizens,” Marian Washington, Kansas women’s coach from 1973-2004, said, per the Wall Street Journal. “All of our great athletes, their records were put on a separate page of [the NCAA] record book.”
Other athletic leagues have integrated stats from leagues that were not previously under their umbrella. AFL stats are included under NFL statistics, and MLB recently added Negro League stats to its official record books.
“I just think that we should take care of our history just as the men take care of their history,” Woodard said, according to the Wall Street Journal. “I know so many players, and about them, on the men’s side. But we work so hard to make people on the women’s side disappear.”
Woodard became the first female member of the Harlem Globetrotters in 1985 and was among the oldest players signed in the first season of the WNBA when she joined the Cleveland Rockers. She won an Olympic gold medal in the 1984 games and earned a World Cup medal in the 1990 Malaysia games and a silver seven years earlier in Rio de Janeiro. She also went on to be an assistant coach for Winthrop women's basketball, ultimately becoming the head coach from 2017-20. Woodard is a member of both the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame and the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
There are plenty in the college basketball world who view Woodard's scoring record as the true mark to beat. Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer told WSJ in an email that Woodard's record is "THE RECORD." Both Muffet McGraw and Lark Birdsong view Woodard as the official record-holder, while LSU's Kim Mulkey (through a spokesman) told the Journal there's an argument for Woodard to hold the record.
Clark is likely to surpass Woodard's record soon. It could even happen on Wednesday, as Clark would need only 33 points to hold the unofficial record. Clark has averaged 32.1 points per game in 2023-24, and 28.3 points per game in her career. If she doesn't pass Woodard on Wednesday, she'll all but certainly do it Sunday against Ohio State.
“I think she’s an awesome player, and what she’s doing is great for the game,” Woodard said, per WSJ. “Got interest at an all-time high, and that’s what is supposed to happen. Bring it on.”
