Iowa's Caitlin Clark sets records off the court, too
Caitlin Clark can't stop breaking records. A week after sinking a record-breaking logo three with audacious ease, the Iowa star is at it again, breaking the record for total merchandise sales in the NIL era at online sports retailing behemoth Fanatics.
From the CNN article detailing her sales feat:
Fanatics told CNN that that it sold more Clark-branded merchandise “than any other individual men’s or women’s NIL-era college athlete across all sports has sold since 2022,” in less than 24 hours after she broke the record last Friday night.
Clark surpassed Kelsey Plum on the way to the official all-time scoring record in women's college basketball. The previous Fanatics all-time merchandise sales leader was the son of Prime Time, Colorado's QB1, Shedeur Sanders.
Key to fueling her merchandise sales and taking over the top spot was a shirt bearing this now-legendary quote from Clark's apparel sponsor, Nike: "You break it, you own it."
Next in her record-breaking sights is Lynette Woodard's unofficial women's scoring record of 3,649 and "Pistol" Pete Maravich's all-time (men and women) record of 3,667. Barring injury, with three regular-season and at least one Big Ten and NCAA Tournament games left, Clark seems all but certain to score the 57 points needed to pass Woodard and 75 needed to pass Maravich.
On Thursday night, Clark scored 24 points in No. 4 Iowa's 86-69 loss to No. 14 Indiana.
As Clark has made record-breaking look ever more routine, snagging a ticket to see her play live has become anything but. According to a recent story from Axios, tickets on Vivid Seats to see Clark play, home or away, are up 167% from last season and over 200% since Clark came to Iowa. It has cost 82% more this season to watch an Iowa women's basketball game ($120) in Iowa City than the average cost to see head coach Fran McCaffery's men play ($66).
Is there a limit to what Clark can do, on or off the court? If her scoring and merchandise sales records aren't enough to impress, she recently added the distinction of gaining the unanimous, bipartisan support of the Iowa State Legislature. They proclaimed Thursday, Feb. 22 Caitlin Clark Day.
Cheers to all who celebrate.
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