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All things sporty (3)

Iowa's Caitlin Clark breaks NCAA women's hoops scoring record​


Catlin Clark had no specific plan for how she hoped to break the NCAA women's basketball scoring record Thursday. But after doing so while also setting the Iowa Hawkeyes' single-game scoring record, Clark had to grin. Clark came into No. 4 Iowa's game against Michigan with 3,520 points, needing eight to break the mark previously set by Washington's Kelsey Plum (3,527) from 2013 to 2017. Clark did it about as quickly as she possibly could. This was Clark's fourth career game scoring 45 points or more, and she had 13 assists. In total, she scored or assisted on 79 of Iowa's 106 points (74.5%).

Clark could reach even more scoring milestones this season. The AIAW large-school women's record -- set just before the NCAA era by Kansas' Lynette Woodard from 1977 to 1981 -- is 3,649 points. The NCAA men's record is 3,667 by LSU's Pete Maravich from 1967 to 1970, before freshman eligibility in college basketball. There also is a chance the AIAW overall record -- 3,884 points, set by Francis Marion's Pearl Moore from 1975 to 1979 -- could be in play for Clark, depending on how far Iowa advances in the postseason. Clark is currently averaging 32.8 points for the 23-3 Hawkeyes, who have four regular-season games left.

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Caitlin Clark passes Lynette Woodard for major-college record​


The black-and-gold-clad fans among the 14,625 at Williams Arena were virtually begging for one more 3-pointer from Caitlin Clark late in Wednesday's game, and she delivered for another historic mark. The Iowa guard continued her record-breaking quest as she passed Kansas Jayhawks legend Lynette Woodard for the major-college women's basketball scoring mark in the No. 6 Hawkeyes' 108-60 victory over Minnesota. Clark scored her 33rd and final point of the game on her eighth 3-pointer, coming at the 4:29 mark of the fourth quarter, to give her 3,650 points. Woodard, who played in the final years of the AIAW from 1977 to '81, scored 3,649 points.

Clark also broke the NCAA women's single-season 3-point record in Wednesday's game; she is now at 156 for this season, and 503 for her career. As a team, Iowa hit a Big Ten single-game record 22 3-pointers and had its 10th 100-point game of the season. The Hawkeyes are 25-4 overall and 14-3 (tied for second) in the Big Ten. Clark got the 17th triple-double of her career as well, adding 12 assists and 10 rebounds to her 33 points. She is second only to Oregon's Sabrina Ionescu, who had 26 triple-doubles from 2016 to '20.

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Iowa's Caitlin Clark passes Pete Maravich for scoring record​


Catlin Clark has joked about being nicknamed "Ponytail Pete" in recognition of how her game resembles that of "Pistol Pete" Maravich. On Sunday in her last regular-season home game, the Iowa star passed the LSU and NBA legend for the most points scored by a Division I basketball player, men's or women's. On senior day at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, Clark entered the game against Big Ten regular-season champion Ohio State needing 18 points to pass Maravich, who scored 3,667 points in his three seasons at LSU from 1967 to 1970. It has been a record-setting season for Clark, who announced Thursday that she would not use the COVID-19 waiver from 2020-21 for a fifth season at Iowa and instead would enter the 2024 WNBA draft. That brought an extra poignancy to senior day,

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zach edey, dalton knecht headline wooden award finalist field
Edey, Purdue's 7-foot-4 center, heads into the final weekend of the regular season as the front-runner to win the Wooden Award, given annually to the best college basketball player in the country. He is aiming to be the first repeat winner since Virginia's Ralph Sampson in 1982 and 1983. - Tennessee's Knecht, the former junior college and Northern Colorado transfer, is likely in second position entering the postseason. He has an impressive collection of single-game performances.
 

Iowa's Caitlin Clark breaks NCAA women's hoops scoring record​


Catlin Clark had no specific plan for how she hoped to break the NCAA women's basketball scoring record Thursday. But after doing so while also setting the Iowa Hawkeyes' single-game scoring record, Clark had to grin. Clark came into No. 4 Iowa's game against Michigan with 3,520 points, needing eight to break the mark previously set by Washington's Kelsey Plum (3,527) from 2013 to 2017. Clark did it about as quickly as she possibly could. This was Clark's fourth career game scoring 45 points or more, and she had 13 assists. In total, she scored or assisted on 79 of Iowa's 106 points (74.5%).

Clark could reach even more scoring milestones this season. The AIAW large-school women's record -- set just before the NCAA era by Kansas' Lynette Woodard from 1977 to 1981 -- is 3,649 points. The NCAA men's record is 3,667 by LSU's Pete Maravich from 1967 to 1970, before freshman eligibility in college basketball. There also is a chance the AIAW overall record -- 3,884 points, set by Francis Marion's Pearl Moore from 1975 to 1979 -- could be in play for Clark, depending on how far Iowa advances in the postseason. Clark is currently averaging 32.8 points for the 23-3 Hawkeyes, who have four regular-season games left.

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Caitlin Clark passes Lynette Woodard for major-college record​


The black-and-gold-clad fans among the 14,625 at Williams Arena were virtually begging for one more 3-pointer from Caitlin Clark late in Wednesday's game, and she delivered for another historic mark. The Iowa guard continued her record-breaking quest as she passed Kansas Jayhawks legend Lynette Woodard for the major-college women's basketball scoring mark in the No. 6 Hawkeyes' 108-60 victory over Minnesota. Clark scored her 33rd and final point of the game on her eighth 3-pointer, coming at the 4:29 mark of the fourth quarter, to give her 3,650 points. Woodard, who played in the final years of the AIAW from 1977 to '81, scored 3,649 points.

Clark also broke the NCAA women's single-season 3-point record in Wednesday's game; she is now at 156 for this season, and 503 for her career. As a team, Iowa hit a Big Ten single-game record 22 3-pointers and had its 10th 100-point game of the season. The Hawkeyes are 25-4 overall and 14-3 (tied for second) in the Big Ten. Clark got the 17th triple-double of her career as well, adding 12 assists and 10 rebounds to her 33 points. She is second only to Oregon's Sabrina Ionescu, who had 26 triple-doubles from 2016 to '20.

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Iowa's Caitlin Clark passes Pete Maravich for scoring record​


Catlin Clark has joked about being nicknamed "Ponytail Pete" in recognition of how her game resembles that of "Pistol Pete" Maravich. On Sunday in her last regular-season home game, the Iowa star passed the LSU and NBA legend for the most points scored by a Division I basketball player, men's or women's. On senior day at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, Clark entered the game against Big Ten regular-season champion Ohio State needing 18 points to pass Maravich, who scored 3,667 points in his three seasons at LSU from 1967 to 1970. It has been a record-setting season for Clark, who announced Thursday that she would not use the COVID-19 waiver from 2020-21 for a fifth season at Iowa and instead would enter the 2024 WNBA draft. That brought an extra poignancy to senior day,

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catlin clark sets 3-point mark in iowa's big 10 tourney win
Clark passed Stephen Curry, who had 162 3-pointers at Davidson in 2007-08, and Darius McGhee, who had 162 last season for Liberty. Both Curry and McGhee did so in 36 games; Clark has played in 31 thus far for the 27-4 Hawkeyes.
 

Iowa star Caitlin Clark headlines Wooden Award top 15​


The record-breaking Caitlin Clark of the Iowa Hawkeyes headlines the 15-player national ballot for the John R. Wooden Award, it was announced on ESPN's "College GameDay" on Sunday. Clark, who was recently named Big Ten Player of the Year for the third time, is featured on the list alongside four other newly tabbed conference players of the year: the Stanford Cardinal's Cameron Brink (Pac-12), UConn Huskies' Paige Bueckers(Big East), Virginia Tech Hokies' Elizabeth Kitley (ACC) and LSU Tigers' Angel Reese (SEC). The award is given annually to the most outstanding player in women's college basketball. Bueckers (2021) and Clark (2023) took home two of the past three honors.

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Purdue retires Zach Edey's jersey after win in home finale​


The 7-foot-4 Purdue senior withstood a physical onslaught from Wisconsin in his home finale, persevered and received a surprise reward: seeing his jersey number, 15, added to the Mackey Arena rafters. Edey played through an injured left leg, finished with 25 points and 14 rebounds, became the first Big Ten player with 2,200 points and 1,200 rebounds in a career, and led No. 3 Purdue past Wisconsin 78-70 on Sunday. And then the Boilermakers surprised him by retiring his jersey.

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houston, uconn, purduea atop men's ap poll, north carolina, kentucky rise
Houston remained atop the AP Top 25 men's college basketball poll for the third consecutive week Monday while a couple of the game's traditional blue bloods made big jumps as they peak just in time for postseason play. The Cougars received 52 of 62 first-place votes.

Top-5
No.1: Houston (28-3)
No.2: UConn (28-3)
No.3: Purdue (28-3)
No.4: North Carolina (25-6)
No.5: Tennessee (24-7)
 

Conferences, Notre Dame agree to new playoff deal​


All nine FBS conferences and Notre Dame have agreed to the next College Football Playoff contract, which will begin in 2026 and bring the sport's postseason much closer to an expected 14-team field with guarantees for conference champions. The memorandum of understanding guarantees that the field will have at least 12 teams in 2026 and beyond, but sources indicate there is a strong preference for a 14-team field that includes the five highest-ranked conference champions and the next nine highest-ranked teams. Sources caution that the exact format is not finalized, and the Big Ten and SEC will have the bulk of control over that, but others will be protected by parameters that have been put in place and can't be altered.

The commissioners and Notre Dame agreed that the conference champions from the ACC, Big Ten, SEC and Big 12 and the highest-ranked Group of 5 champion would earn playoff berths, and Notre Dame will have protections that will survive regardless of the ultimate format. With those ironclad guarantees, the other commissioners and Notre Dame leadership surrendered the bulk of the control over the format to the SEC and Big Ten as "part of the give-and-take," according to a source. Starting in 2026, the new six-year agreement will codify the further financial separation of the expanded Big Ten and SEC from everyone else in college athletics. The Group of 5 commissioners were in a difficult position without any negotiating power but faced the alternative of being excluded from the CFP.

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Top-ranked Novak Djokovic withdraws from Miami Open​


Top-ranked Novak Djokovic will skip the Miami Open, saying less than a week after a surprise loss at Indian Wells that he needs to balance his "private and professional schedule." Djokovic's announcement Saturday on his social media accounts follows his 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 defeat to unheralded Luca Nardi on Monday in the third round of the BNP Paribas Open. Djokovic, 36, is a six-time champion in Miami. The hard-court tournament begins next week. Nardi, 20, who is ranked No. 123, became the lowest-ranked player to beat Djokovic in a Grand Slam or ATP Masters 1000 level event, surpassing No. 122 Kevin Anderson in 2008 in Miami.

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purdues zach edey unanimously tops all-american teams
For the second straight year, Purdue's Zach Edey is the unanimous headliner for the Associated Press men's college basketball All-America team. The 7-foot-4, 300-pound senior topped all 62 ballots from AP Top 25 poll voters in results released Tuesday. The reigning AP national player of the year claimed all 58 votes last year.

**********
First team
Zach Edey, Purdue
Dalton Knecht, Tennessee
RJ Davis, North Carolina
Jamal Shead, Houston
Tristen Newton, UConn
 
college football playoff, espn agree to deal through 2031-32
ESPN, which has held exclusive broadcast rights since the CFP began in 2015, will expand its package for the final two years of the current 12-year contract, which runs through the 2025-26 season. The CFP is unveiling a 12-team format for the 2024-25 season and ESPN will add all four of the new first-round games each year to the network's existing coverage of the New Year's Six bowls (now the quarterfinals and semifinals) and the CFP National Championship game.
 
[catlin clark, 2 freshmen top ap wpmen's all-american team
Catlin Clark has been a mainstay on The Associated Press All-America team the past few seasons. Clark joins a select group with her third first-team honor: South Carolina's A'ja Wilson and Aliyah Boston, Baylor's Brittney Griner, Tennessee's Chamique Holdsclaw, Duke's Alana Beard, Paris, Oregon's Sabrina Ionescu, Kentucky's Rhyne Howard and UConn's Breanna Stewart and Moore. Paris and Moore did it four times.

**********
First team
Catlin Clark, Iowa State
Cameron Brink. Stanford
Paige Bueckers, UConn
JuJu Watkins, USC (freshmen)
Hannah Hidaldo, Notre Dame (freshmen)
 

Wrexham owe $11m to celebrity owners Reynolds, McElhenney​


Wrexham, the Welsh team bought by Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney in 2021, released their accounts for the latest financial year on Thursday and reported that the amount owed to the two owner/celebrities has risen to nearly £9 million ($11.4m). That was up from £3.7m ($4.67m) from the previous year, ending June 2022. While the club said turnover rose from nearly £6m ($7.5m) to £10.5m ($13.3m) and that future prospects are positive, losses increased to £5.1m ($6.4m) from £2.9m ($3.66m). Reynolds and McElhenney purchased Wrexham, one of the world's oldest football clubs, for $2.5m while the team were in the fifth tier of the English game. They have since been promoted to the English Football League and are bidding for back-to-back promotions, which would take the team to third-tier League One. Wrexham are third in League Two heading into a home game against leader Mansfield on Friday. The top three teams at the end of the season are automatically promoted, and the next four enter a playoff for one last promotion spot. Wrexham are three points above fourth-place MK Dons with a game in hand.

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Notre Dame AD: Independent status 'more valuable than ever'​


While college athletics undergoes sweeping changes, Notre Dame's desire to remain independent is constant, as Notre Dame leadership feels "as secure as ever" in its football status, first-year athletic director Pete Bevacqua told ESPN on Thursday. Bevacqua, who began his new role on Monday following the retirement of longtime athletic director Jack Swarbrick, cited multiple reasons for the athletic department's continued sense of security. He said the university's most recent television deal with NBC, its partnership with the ACC for all other sports except hockey, and the new College Football Playoff deal all provide financial security. He also said he's "bullish" on the future of the football program as coach Marcus Freeman enters his third season.

According to sources, in the new six-year CFP agreement, which begins in 2026, Notre Dame has the potential to earn roughly $18 million annually, which would significantly elevate the program closer to what the Big Ten and SEC schools will be making (more than $21 million). It would also boost the Irish ahead of the ACC and Big 12 schools. Starting in 2026, Notre Dame is expected to get more than $12 million from CFP revenue distribution, which is in the same ballpark as ACC schools (more than $13 million annually) and Big 12 schools (also more than $12 million each).

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