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Former Orlando Magic and LA Lakers great Shaquille O’Neal heaped praise on Iowa’s star point guard Caitlin Clark as she became the leading NCAA women’s scorer. The 21-year-old delivered the record-breaking performance on Thursday, as the Hawkeyes locked horns with Michigan. Clark scored eight points within three minutes to break the previous record set by Kelsey Plum to top the leading scorer’s charts. The Iowa star pulled off her signature shot, the 35-foot three-pointer to break the record.
This wasn’t it as Clark finished the night with her career-highest score of 49 points and had 13 assists as her side took down the counterparts 106-89. With her frequent heroics with her side Hawkeyes, Clark bagged the title of the ‘Best Female College Athlete’ at the ESPYs a few weeks ago. At the halftime, she said in a televised interview, “It’s cool. It’s cool to be in the same realm as a lot of really, really good players. I’m lucky to do it because I have good teammates and good coaches as well as a great support system that surrounds me.”
She's the best female collegiate player ever: Shaquille O’Neal on Caitlin Clark
The Hall of Famer praised the young basketball star and said that she is the best female collegiate player ever. During an interview post-game, the 51-year-old praised Clark and said, “She is incredible. Congratulations to her and her family. The craziest thing is, I’m seeing the last year when they played LSU. But, she is phenomenal. I am gonna go on the record and say that she is the best female collegiate player ever. Ever. I said what I said.”
This isn’t the first time that the former NBA player has been in awe of the young player who is yet to make her WNBA debut. Clark is often compared to Warriors’ superstar Stephen Curry for her three-pointers. Recently, one of her videos went viral where Clark could be seen engaging in a highly intense workout. Shaq shared the video on his Instagram and was simply astonished by the intensity.
