The scoring record of Caitlin Clark demonstrates the influence of Pearl Moore and Lynette Woodard.
On Thursday night, Caitlin Clark made history in the NCAA women’s basketball program by breaking the previous record for scoring. With one game left in Clark’s college career, her scoring record has surpassed the previous high by a wide margin, surpassing 3,527 points.
The senior Iowa Hawkeyes player constantly poses a threat to opposing defenses with his deep shooting, inventive drives, and tight handles.
Having broken Kelsey Plum’s scoring record—a University of Washington player who is currently a WNBA champion with the Las Vegas Aces—Clark has a lot to be proud of. However, basketball players Lynette Woodard and Pearl Moore are not mentioned in this tale.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Woodard was a standout player for the University of Kansas, amassing 3,649 points in four years.
Why then is Woodard not the all-time leader in scoring? More points is still points, after all.
As it happens, Woodard competed before women’s collegiate sports were officially recognized by the NCAA. An NCAA representative told The Wall Street Journal that statistics from non-NCAA associations “are not currently included in NCAA record books, regardless of gender.”
While discussing Woodard’s scoring record, some are also making the case that she may be the forgotten GOAT (greatest of all time) in women’s college basketball.
Woodard competed in the Olympics twice, taking home the gold in 1984 while leading Team USA. She also became the first female member of the Harlem Globetrotters. She even came out of retirement to play for the newly formed WNBA after playing abroad. Stated differently, Woodard set an example that contemporary female basketball players are now trying to follow.
“In celebrating Caitlin’s accomplishments, I hope that we can also shine a light on the pioneers who paved the way before her,” Woodard said in a statement provided to NPR. The wonderful history of women’s basketball predates the NCAA’s involvement. I’m proud of Caitlin for everything she’s accomplished and can’t wait to watch her rack up tons more points in the years to come.” There are other women’s basketball greats whose legacies are coming to light besides Woodard. Even less well-known basketball player Pearl Moore’s college scoring record ought to endure even longer.
During his time as a Francis Marion College player in the late 1970s, Moore scored more points than Woodard. In women’s college basketball, Moore’s record of 4,061 points has stood for decades. Furthermore, Francis Marion’s sports records have gotten far less attention because it isn’t a Division I university. Moore, though, was named a four-time Small College All American and went on to play professionally for the St. Louis Streak and the New York Stars. The brief Women’s Professional Basketball League included both teams.
The four-time college All-American expressed her excitement in a recent interview for Caitlin Clark’s potential to shatter scoring records that aren’t NCAA-approved.
“History was intended to be broken. And when I consider LeBron James and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, for example, I figure there was a 40-year gap between LeBron’s 38 and that record stood for about 30 years,” Moore remarked. “And I completed my college education at the age of 22, and I’m currently 66, breaking records by about 40 years. If she succeeds, that’s fantastic for her.”
Numerous women’s basketball legends are now commenting on the underappreciated achievements of players like Woodard and Moore in light of the increased focus on scoring records. Days after overtaking Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski to take the record for most coaching victories in college basketball, Tara VanDerveer of Stanford gave her opinion to The Wall Street Journal.
VanDerveer wrote, “I think Lynette Woodard’s overall record is THE RECORD.” She also mentioned that before the 3-point line was ever put on the court, Woodard had scored all of her points.
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