IOWA CITY, Iowa — University of Iowa women’s basketball sophomore Caitlin Clark was named one of four finalists for the 2022 Honda Sport Award for Women’s Basketball, the Collegiate Women Sports Awards announced Wednesday.
The Honda Sport Award has been presented annually by the CWSA for 46 years to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports and signifies “the best of the best in collegiate athletics”. The winner of the sport award becomes a finalist for the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the prestigious 2022 Honda Cup which will be presented on CBS Sports Network.
The women’s basketball finalists were selected by a panel of coaches and experts from the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). The Honda Sport award winner for women’s basketball will be announced after voting by administrators from over 1,000 NCAA member schools concludes on Fri., April 7. Each NCAA member institution has a vote.
Clark, a West Des Moines, Iowa, native, led the nation in points per game (27.0), assists per game (8.0), total assists (257), total points (863), free throws made (200), triple doubles (5) and 30-point games (11). Clark is the only women’s basketball player to lead the country in both assists per game and points per game in a single season.
Clark registered five triple-doubles this season, leading the country in most career triple-doubles by an active player with six. Clark’s six career triple-doubles ties former Hawkeye Sam Logic’s Big Ten record (2011-15) for most in a career and ties for the fifth most single season (5) and career (6) triple-doubles in NCAA Division I history.
In January, Clark joined the likes of Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, James Hardin, Luka Dončić and Giannis Antetokounmpo as the only NBA, WNBA, Division I men’s and women’s basketball to record back-to-back 30-point triple doubles since 2000. She is one of 10 women’s basketball players (15 times) to register back-to-back triple doubles in their careers — the only NCAA player (male or female) to do so with 30-plus points in the pair.
Clark broke the 1,000-career point barrier against Evansville in early January and became the fastest Division I player (men’s or women’s) to reach 1,500 career points over the last 20 seasons, reaching the feat in 56 games.
Against Penn State, Clark broke the Iowa single-game assist record, tallying 18 and tying the Big Ten record against a conference opponent in a regular season or Big Ten Tournament game. Clark is tied with Nebraska’s Rachel Theriot who had 18 assists against Minnesota on March 7, 2014 in the B1G Tournament.
Clark set a career-high 46 points against No. 6 Michigan, registering her 12th double-double of the season with 10 assists and breaking her third women’s basketball arena scoring record. She now holds the scoring records at Iowa’s Carver-Hawkeye Arena (44), Michigan’s Crisler Center (46) and Nebraska’s Pinnacle Bank Arena (39).
Clark was named Big Ten Player of the Year and Big Ten Tournament MVP, while earning unanimous first team All-Big Ten honors and an All-Big Ten Tournament spot. She was named the Nancy Lieberman Point Guard of the Year and Dawn Staley Guard of the Year Award recipient. She was also named a Naismith finalist and to the WBCA Wade Trophy finalist, John R. Wooden Award finalist and All-American. She is a 2021-22 first team AP All-American, USBWA All-American, WBCA All-American and All-Region honoree and first team CoSIDA Academic All-American.