Most points in an NCAA championship game: Where Caitlin Clark ranks on list headed by Sheryl Swoopes

Gilbert McGregor

Most points in an NCAA championship game: Where Caitlin Clark ranks on list headed by Sheryl Swoopes image

On the biggest stages, big-time players turn in big-time performances. In college basketball, no stage is bigger than the national championship game.

Iowa's Caitlin Clark fits the description of a big-time player and her performance in the 2024 national championship game is yet another reminder that she is worthy of the billing. By erupting for a championship game-record 18 points in the opening quarter, Clark put her name on the all-time leaderboard for a second time after scoring 30 points in 2023.

Here is a list of the highest-scoring games in the NCAA championship game.

MORE: Full results, highlights from Iowa vs. South Carolina NCAA championship game

Most individual points in an NCAA championship game

Sheryl Swoopes owns the record for most points in an NCAA championship game. Swoopes scored 47 points to lead Texas Tech to the 1993 title. 

Swoopes is the only player to score 40 points in an NCAA championship game but three players have scored 30-plus points with a national title on the line. Among them is Clark, who did so in back-to-back years.

Most individual points in an NCAA championship game (from NCAA)
  Player Points Year
1. Sheryl Swoopes, Texas Tech 47 1993
2. Arike Ogunbowale, Notre Dame 31 2019
3. Danielle Adams, Texas A&M 30 2011
  Caitlin Clark, Iowa 30 2023
  Caitlin Clark, Iowa 30 2024
5. Dena Head, Tennessee 28 1991
  Dawn Staley, Virginia 28 1991
  Katie Smith, Ohio State 28 1993
  Ruth Riley, Notre Dame 28 2001
  Diana Taurasi, UConn 28 2003

Interestingly, three of the top five performances have come in losing efforts as Clark and the Hawkeyes fell to LSU in 2023 and South Carolina in 2024. Ogunbowale's Irish suffered a one-point loss to Baylor in 2019.

In addition to her place on the single-game leaderboard, Clark became the NCAA Tournament's all-time scoring leader, surpassing Chamique Holdsclaw, who scored 479 points in 22 tournament games. Clark's record came in six fewer appearances.

Gilbert McGregor

Gilbert McGregor Photo

Gilbert McGregor first joined The Sporting News in 2018 as a content producer for Global editions of NBA.com. Before covering the game, McGregor played basketball collegiately at Wake Forest, graduating with a Communication degree in 2016. McGregor began covering the NBA during the 2017-18 season and has been on hand for a number of league events.