Caitlin Clark is currently one of the most dominating players in the league of college basketball and is expected to be one of the top drafts in the WNBA. Her impressive skills and ability to score from anywhere in the blink of an eye, have made her a No.1 WNBA draft prospect. Seeing this young star in action, many fans draw a parallel between her and the greats who came before her.
Kelsey Plum, a renowned figure in the WNBA, also had one of the greatest careers in the history of the NCAA. While several fans can’t wait for a Clark v/s Plum showdown in the WNBA, many wanted to know how both of them performed in their NCAA careers.
NCAA’s twin glories
After having one of the best high school careers, Caitlin Clark started her college career as a starting point guard. In her freshman season, she claimed several accolades, including a triple-double and Big Ten Freshman of the Year, as she averaged 26.6 points, 7.1 assists, and 5.9 rebounds per game. But she wasn’t done yet, as her sophomore season started, she broke several records and earned the Player of the Year title, by averaging 27 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists per game. Even though she upped her game, she wasn’t happy with the results.
As she went on to her junior year, even after getting her ankle injured she played on and led the Hawkeyes to their first-ever national championship game, while averaging 27.8 points, 8.6 assists, and 7.1 rebounds per game. Her recent achievement in the ongoing NCAA season had the fans on their toes as she achieved 3000 career points.
On the other hand, the Aces star, Kelsey Plum quickly began her college career after clinching a gold medal for the USA in the U-19 in FIBA. The head coach of the University of Washington, Mike Neighbors quickly realized the talent she brought with her and made Plum the captain of the team. That year averaged 20.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game, but this was just merely the beginning of a rising star. As she moved to her sophomore year, she was named among the top players who are viewed as having the potential to win Player of the Year honors.
However, they lost the game to Miami and were out of the tournament. But Plum stood her ground and led the Huskies to their first Final Four appearance in program history, in her junior year by averaging 25.9 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game. In her senior year, the performance she put out had the world in awe, as she achieved numerous awards while averaging 31.7 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 4.8 assists per game. She ended her senior year by recording a total of 1,109 points, a single-season record and a total career points of 3,527.
While both of their stats are almost parallel to one another, there can only be one that is the greatest out of them, and this will be answered when they go against each other in the WNBA next year. Notably, the 2023-24 NCAA season is seeing one of the best performances by Caitlin Clark.
How’s Clark performing in the ongoing season?
Clark has led the Iowa Hawkeyes to one of the best seasons they have seen in their history. So far, they have played a total of eleven matches, out of which they have won ten and lost one. The only loss they have recorded till now was against the Kansas State Wildcats, which also happened to be Clark’s worst shooting night in her career.
But they quickly learned from their mistakes and made a huge comeback. In the ongoing season, Caitlin Clark is currently averaging 29.5 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 7.4 assists per game.
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As the season continues all eyes will be on Clark to witness if she will be able to secure this year’s title after losing in the finals of the last season against the LSU Tigers and her archrival Angel Reese.
