Moments after Caitlin Clark surpassed Pete Maravich for the most points scored by an NCAA Division I basketball player on Sunday, Nike aired an ad celebrating the Iowa star on the television broadcast of the No. 6 Hawkeyes’ 93—83 win over No. 2 Ohio State.
But the iconic footwear and apparel brand, which came up with a witty tribute for Clark after she broke the women’s NCAA scoring record in February, may have outdone itself with the giant ad it unveiled in downtown Iowa City before the start of the Hawkeyes—Buckeyes game on Sunday morning.
The ad, which features two buildings, displays a gigantic banner of Clark taking a jump shot on a seven-story building at 125 E. Burlington St., then showcases another banner of a basket across the street.
.@nikebasketball knew 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗮 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘁. @CaitlinClark22 x #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/ohT3JK7BvD
— Iowa Women's Basketball (@IowaWBB) March 3, 2024
The caption “This was never a long shot,” is the perfect nod to Clark’s seemingly limitless range on the court.
Clark, who declared for the 2024 WNBA draft on Thursday, played her final home game for Iowa on Sunday, recording 35 points and nine assists in the victory.
Clark and the Hawkeyes will now turn their attention to the upcoming Big Ten tournament, which begins Wednesday in Minneapolis. Iowa is the No. 2 seed and plays at 6:30 p.m. ET Friday against the winner of seventh-seeded Penn State and No. 10 seed Wisconsin.
