Caitlin Clark is set to begin her third WNBA season with the Indiana Fever in 2026. The point guard was forced to miss most of the 2025 season, including the entire playoffs, due to numerous injuries. But she appears to be ready to make a full return to the court, especially after winning the TISSOT MVP at the 2026 FIBA World Cup qualifying tournament in March.
But before Clark became a superstar in the WNBA, the guard made a name for herself playing college basketball for the Iowa Hawkeyes. She led the program to back-to-back national championship appearances, coming up just short in both, while earning first-team All-American honors in all four seasons. Clark also broke the NCAA record for most career points with 3,951, passing former LSU star Pete Maravich. However, on Friday, she lost a different spot in college basketball history.
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) sits on the bench before a game.Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
(Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images)
The 2026 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament is well underway, and on Friday, the Sweet 16 tipped off as Mikayla Blakes and the No. 2 seed Vanderbilt Commodores faced Hannah Hidalgo and the No. 3 seed Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Entering the game, Blakes, a two-time All-American, had totaled 1,661 points during her first two seasons at Vanderbilt, marking the fourth-most points by a player in her first two Division I seasons.
With 2:02 remaining in the first quarter of Vanderbilt vs. Notre Dame, Blakes went to the free-throw line after a foul by the Fighting Irish’s Cassandre Prosper. She knocked down both attempts, scoring her first two points of the game and bringing her career total to 1,663. In doing so, Blakes passed Clark (1,662) for the third-most points in a player’s first two seasons in women’s college basketball history.
While Blakes continues to make history, the Commodores will likely need to stay alive in the tournament for their star to climb the ranks again. USC Trojans guard JuJu Watkins ranks second on the all-time list with 1,709 points, while former Ohio State Buckeyes guard Kelsey Mitchell, who also happens to be Clark’s teammate on the Fever, holds the record with 1,762 points in her first two collegiate seasons.
“Vanderbilt’s Mikayla Blakes passes Caitlin Clark on the list of most points scored in the first two seasons of a DI career 👏,” the Sporting News wrote on X. “Only JuJu Watkins (1,709) and Kelsey Mitchell (1,762) have more.”
Clark and the Fever will begin the 2026 WNBA season on May 9, facing Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Related: Indiana Fever React to Heartbreaking News on Monday
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Mar 27, 2026, where it first appeared in the WNBA section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.