List of NCAA Division I women's basketball career scoring leaders

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In basketball, points are the sum of the score accumulated through free throws or field goals.[1] In National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I basketball, where a player's career is at most four seasons under normal circumstances, it is considered a notable achievement to reach the 1,000-points scored threshold. In even rarer instances, players have reached the 2,000- and 3,000-point plateaus (no player, whether male or female, has ever scored 4,000 or more points at the Division I level). The top 25 highest scorers in NCAA Division I women's basketball history are listed below. While the NCAA's current three-division format has been in place since the 1973–74 season,[2] it did not sponsor women's sports until the 1981–82 school year; before that time, women's college sports were governed by the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW).

To be listed in the NCAA record book, a player must have been active in at least three seasons during the era in which the NCAA governed women's sports—although for those players who qualify for inclusion in the record book, AIAW statistics are included. Most notably, Lynette Woodard of Kansas, whose career total of 3,649 points makes her the all-time scoring leader in women's major-college basketball,[a] is not recognized as the NCAA career leader because her entire college career (1977–81) predated NCAA sponsorship of women's sports.[5]

Some players among the top 25 scorers in Division I history played in the era before the three-point line was officially adopted in women's basketball on an experimental basis in 1986–87 and fully in 1987–88. All of the players with a dash through the three-point field goals column were affected by this rule. Valorie Whiteside of Appalachian State is the only three-point shot era player on this list who did not make a single three-point shot, and she only played in one season in which the use of the three-pointer was mandatory.

The three-point distance was first marked at 19 ft 9 in (6.02 m) from the center of the basket, the same distance then used in NCAA men's basketball.[6] From that point through the 2007–08 season, the three-point lines remained at 19 ft 9 in (6.02 m).[6] On May 3, 2007, the NCAA men's basketball rules committee passed a measure to extend the distance of the men's three-point line back to 20 ft 9 in (6.32 m);[7] the women's line remained at the original distance until it was moved to match the men's distance effective in 2011–12.[6] The men's distance was changed to match the FIBA standard of 6.75 m (22 ft 1+1⁄2 in) in a two-phase implementation that took effect in 2019–20 in Division I and 2020–21 in Divisions II and III,[8] but the women's distance was not changed until 2021–22, when it was moved to match the men's distance.[9]

The only player on this list to be enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is Cheryl Miller.[10]

Three players among the top 25 played basketball in more than four seasons. Rachel Banham of Minnesota tore her ACL 10 games into her senior season of 2014–15. She qualified for a medical hardship waiver, popularly known as a "medical redshirt", that allowed her to compete in a fifth season.[11][b] Ashley Joens of Iowa State and Dyaisha Fair of Buffalo and Syracuse both benefited from a blanket NCAA waiver that did not count the 2020–21 season, which was impacted by COVID-19, against the athletic eligibility of any basketball player. Two players among the top 25 played at more than one school, Alysha Clark, who played two seasons at Belmont before transferring to Middle Tennessee, and Dyaisha Fair, who played the first three seasons of her career at the University of Buffalo before transferring to Syracuse University for her final two seasons of eligibility.

Key[edit]

Top 25 career scoring leaders[edit]

Player Pos. Team Career
start 		Career
end 		Games
played 		Total field goals
made 		3-point
field
goals made 		Free
throws made 		Points PPG Ref.[c]
Caitlin Clark^ G Iowa 2020 present 126 1,171 487 740 3,569 28.3 [13]
Kelsey Plum G Washington 2013 2017 139 1,136 343 912 3,527 25.4
Kelsey Mitchell G Ohio State 2014 2018 139 1,120 497 665 3,402 24.5
Jackie Stiles† G Missouri State[d] 1997 2001 129 1,160 221 852 3,393 26.1 [14][e]
Brittney Griner C Baylor 2009 2013 148 1,247 2 787 3,283 22.2 [f]
Dyaisha Fair^ G Buffalo / Syracuse 2019 present 146 1,099 406 620 3,224 22.1 [15]
Patricia Hoskins F Mississippi Valley State 1985 1989 110 1,196 24 708 3,122 28.4 [16][g]
Lorri Bauman F Drake 1980 1984 120 1,104 — 907 3,115 26.0 [16][g]
Jerica Coley G FIU 2010 2014 131 1,099 160 749 3,107 23.7
Rachel Banham G Minnesota 2011 2016 144 1,081 354 577 3,093 21.5
Ashley Joens G/F Iowa State 2018 2023 158 988 344 740 3,060 19.3 [17]
Elena Delle Donne F Delaware 2009 2013 114 1,030 206 773 3,039 26.7 [18]
Maya Moore F UConn[h] 2007 2011 154 1,171 311 383 3,036 19.7 [i]
Chamique Holdsclaw† F Tennessee 1995 1999 146 1,233 36 523 3,025 20.4 [19][j]
Cheryl Miller* F USC 1982 1986 126 1,159 — 700 3,018 23.6 [16][g]
Cindy Blodgett G Maine 1994 1998 118 1,055 219 676 3,005 25.5 [16][g]
LaToya Thomas F Mississippi State 1999 2003 125 1,119 34 709 2,981 23.8
Valorie Whiteside F Appalachian State 1984 1988 116 1,153 0 638 2,944 25.4 [16][g]
Kelly Mazzante G Penn State 2000 2004 133 1,051 357 460 2,919 21.9
Joyce Walker C LSU 1980 1984 117 1,259 — 388 2,906 24.8 [16][g]
Maddy Siegrist F Villanova 2019 2023 119 1,094 210 498 2,896 24.3 [20]
Jess Kovatch G Saint Francis (PA) 2015 2019 130 965 472 473 2,874 22.1
Kevi Luper G Oral Roberts 2009 2013 126 1,052 195 568 2,867 22.8 [k]
Alysha Clark F Belmont / Middle Tennessee 2005 2010[l] 123 1,028 42 767 2,865 23.3 [m]
Heather Butler G UT Martin 2010 2014 129 958 392 557 2,865 22.2

Footnotes[edit]

  1. ^ The overall scoring leader in women's college basketball is Pearl Moore, who scored 4,061 points from 1975–1979, mostly at Francis Marion (now an NCAA Division II program) after briefly playing at a junior college.[3] The NAIA leader is Miriam Walker, with 3,855 points at Claflin (now also NCAA Division II) from 1986–1990.[4]
  2. ^ While Elena Delle Donne was a varsity athlete at Delaware in five school years, she did not play basketball in her first school year, instead playing volleyball.[12]
  3. ^ Except as otherwise noted, references for each entry are cited in the "General references" section below. Specifically:
    • Games played and total points are available from the most recent edition of the NCAA Division I women's basketball record book.
    • More detailed statistics are available by searching for the named player in the NCAA women's basketball statistical database. Enter the player's name (last name required, first name optional), make sure that the "Player" option is specified, and click on the appropriate entry returned.
  4. ^ Known as Southwest Missouri State during Stiles' career.
  5. ^ The NCAA statistical database does not include any statistics from Stiles' 1997–98 freshman season.
  6. ^ The NCAA statistical database does not list Griner's point total from her 2009–10 freshman season. However, it lists her made field goals, three-pointers, and free throws for all four seasons of her career.
  7. ^ a b c d e f This player is not listed in the NCAA statistical database. However, entering the 2019–20 season, she was among the top 25 players on the official D-I women's leaderboard for career scoring average. This leaderboard, included in the printed NCAA D-I record book for 2019–20, provides a complete breakdown of each player's scoring.
  8. ^ Officially known for athletic purposes as Connecticut during her college career.
  9. ^ The NCAA statistical database does not list Moore's point total from her 2009–10 junior season. However, it lists her made field goals, three-pointers, and free throws for all four seasons of her career.
  10. ^ The NCAA statistical database only lists Holdsclaw's statistics from one of her four college seasons, namely her 1998–99 senior season.
  11. ^ The NCAA statistical database does not list Luper's point total from her 2009–10 freshman season. However, it lists her made field goals, three-pointers, and free throws for all four seasons of her career.
  12. ^ Clark's career spanned five seasons, but she only played in four. She transferred from Belmont to Middle Tennessee after the 2006–07 season, sitting out the 2007–08 season due to then-current NCAA transfer rules.
  13. ^ The NCAA statistical database does not list Clark's point total from her 2009–10 redshirt senior season. However, it lists her made field goals, three-pointers, and free throws for all four seasons in which she played.

References[edit]

General
  • "Career Records: Scoring". 2019–20 Division I Women's Basketball Records (PDF). NCAA. p. 12. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  • "NCAA Career Statistics". NCAA. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
Specific
  1. ^ "Basketball glossary". FIBA.com. Archived from the original on May 16, 2010. Retrieved July 7, 2010.
  2. ^ "NCAA 101: Our Three Divisions". NCAA. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  3. ^ Iacobelli, Pete (February 14, 2024). "The women's scoring record belongs to Pearl Moore. Caitlin Clark is unlikely to reach it this year". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved February 15, 2024.
  4. ^ Eisenberg, Jeff (February 14, 2024). "Go Eutectics! College basketball's most prolific scorer plays for a school (with a strange mascot) you've never heard of". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved February 15, 2024.
  5. ^ "Woodard also one to remember". Archived from the original on 2013-03-30. Retrieved 2013-04-04.
  6. ^ a b c "2020–21 NCAA Women's Basketball Playing Rules History" (PDF). NCAA. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
  7. ^ Katz, Andy (May 3, 2007). "Committee extends men's 3-point line to 20-9". ESPN. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
  8. ^ "Men's basketball 3-point line extended to international distance" (Press release). NCAA. June 5, 2019. Retrieved June 7, 2019.
  9. ^ "International 3-point line distance approved in women's basketball" (Press release). NCAA. June 3, 2021. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
  10. ^ "Hall of Famers: Cheryl Miller". Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  11. ^ "Minnesota Retires Rachel Banham's No. 1 Jersey" (Press release). WNBA. January 2, 2017. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  12. ^ Hays, Graham (December 5, 2012). "Comfort Zone". espnW. Retrieved December 5, 2012.
  13. ^ "Caitlin Clark". Sports Reference CBB. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  14. ^ "1,000-Point Club". 2019–20 Missouri State Lady Bears Media Guide (PDF). Missouri State Athletics. p. 139. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  15. ^ "Dyaisha Fair College Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  16. ^ a b c d e f "Career Records: Scoring Average". 2019–20 Division I Women's Basketball Records (PDF). NCAA. p. 15. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
  17. ^ "Ashley Joens". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
  18. ^ "Elena Delle Donne". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  19. ^ "Records: Great Lady Vol Scorers". 2019–20 Lady Vol Basketball Media Guide (PDF). University of Tennessee Athletics. p. 146. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  20. ^ "Maddy Siegrist". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
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