Caitlin Clark Wins Ann Meyers Drysdale Award

DALLAS — University of Iowa junior Caitlin Clark has been selected as the winner of the 2023 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award as the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) National Player of the Year.

Clark will formally receive the award at the upcoming USBWA College Basketball Awards Banquet on April 12 in St. Louis hosted by the Missouri Athletic Club.

Clark is the second Hawkeye to win the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award alongside Megan Gustafson, a two-time USBWA All-American who won the award in 2019. Clark and Gustafson are the only Big Ten players to earn the award in its now 36-year history since the 1988 season. Clark is the first Iowa player to earn three USBWA All-America honors as the Hawkeyes’ eighth all-time All-American and the first with multiple honors since Gustafson in 2018 and 2019.

The most dominant player in women’s college basketball, Clark has already been recognized as the 2023 Naismith Trophy, Wade Trophy, Associated Press and The Athletic National Player of the Year, as well as being voted a Big Ten Player of the Year for the second consecutive season. A unanimous first team Associated Press and All-Big Ten honoree, Clark also excels in the classroom being voted the 2023 Academic All-American of the Year. Clark is also a finalist for the Wooden, Dawn Staley and Nancy Lieberman awards.

Clark has captivated audiences with her style of play, posting unprecedented numbers of 984 points, 311 assists, 262 rebounds, 127 three-pointers, 56 steals and 20 blocks in leading the Hawkeyes to a historic season. She is the first Division I women’s basketball player to record more than 900 points and 300 assists in the same season. Her 984 points are sixth most in Division I history and second most in a single season in Big Ten history (1,001 by Gustafson in 2019).

The West Des Moines, Iowa, native has registered +25 points, +5 rebounds and +5 assists in 18 games this year (most in Division I) and 40 times in her career; most in NCAA women’s basketball history. Clark, who has made 334 career triples, will become the program’s all-time 3-point champion with her next made trey.

Clark leads the nation’s best offense averaging 27.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 8.6 assists per game. She accounts for 57 percent of Iowa’s offensive output in points and assists.

She leads Division I in several statistical categories including assists per game (8.6), three-pointers made (127), and triple-doubles (5). She has scored 30 or more points in 12 games, including three 40-point performances. Clark broke Iowa’s junior single season records in scoring and assists. She also became the Big Ten single season statistical champion in assists (311).

In Iowa’s four NCAA Tournament games this March, Clark is averaging 30 points, 11 assists, 5.8 rebounds, 4.8 three-pointers and 2.5 steals.

In Iowa’s last outing against Louisville, Clark recorded her 11th career triple-double totaling 41 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. She became the first player in NCAA Tournament history to record a 40-point triple-double. The 41-point performance ties for the third most points scored in NCAA Tournament Regional Final history. Her 41 points and eight 3-pointers made are Iowa NCAA Tournament single game records.

This is the second USBWA national award for Clark – she was the USBWA’s Co-Freshman of the Year in 2021, sharing the honor with UConn’s Paige Bueckers.

Ann Meyers Drysdale played at UCLA from 1974-78, which pre-dates the USBWA All-America selections. She was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993 and the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999.

Clark and the second-ranked Iowa women’s basketball team (30-6) will face top-ranked South Carolina (36-0) tonight in the national semifinals at American Airlines Center in Dallas. Tipoff is scheduled for approximately 8:30 p.m. (CT). The game will be televised on ESPN and broadcast on the Hawkeye Radio Network.