Numbers don’t lie: Paige Bueckers has outperformed Caitlin Clark, JuJu Watkins

The women's NCAA Tournament is down to six teams heading into the final two Elite Eight matchups Monday night. 

And each game — Iowa vs. LSU at 7 p.m. ET, followed by USC vs. UConn at 9 p.m. ET — is thick with enough juicy subplots to make them must-see theater.

But the main attraction will be the individual superstars, led by Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, the all-time NCAA Division I scoring leader whose soaring popularity has lifted the women’s game to new heights, even surpassing the men’s game in terms of media coverage, attendance and ticket prices.

Clark, however, won’t be the only first-team All-American guard in action when her Hawkeyes take the court in Albany, N.Y., against defending champion LSU in a highly anticipated rematch of last year’s national title game.

As Clark renews her trash-talking rivalry with LSU star Angel Reese, the other game features two players Clark has largely overshadowed — USC freshman sensation JuJu Watkins and UConn’s all-everything guard Paige Bueckers, who will face off in Portland, Ore., with a Final Four berth at stake.  

While Clark has garnered national attention for her extraordinary scoring numbers, Watkins and Bueckers have excelled in the background, quietly putting together outstanding seasons that would have garnered some of the spotlight if it wasn’t focused squarely on Clark.

After his team’s Sweet 16 victory, UConn coach Geno Auriemma even took a stab at elevating Bueckers’ profile above Clark’s when he called his star guard “the best player in America.”

His comments caused a social media stir, although Auriemma was only saying what any coach would say about his player. USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb would likely say the same thing about Watkins, whose scoring numbers mirror Clark’s when she was a freshman.

But if you were to compare Bueckers, Clark and Watkins statistically, which player would come out on top? 

Below is a table that shows the three players’ numbers in several key categories over the past six games — their three conference tournament games in addition to their NCAA Tournament games.