It's time to bury the asterisk and just enjoy the moment

The question: Who is the all-time leading scorer in Division I basketball history?The answer: Caitlin Clark.It's a simple question with an even simpler answer. It is a fact and does not come with an asterisk, though if some had their way that little symbol would indeed be attached.When Iowa's Clark scored 35 points against Ohio State last Sunday she surpassed the legendary "Pistol" Pete Maravich for the most career points in major college history. Almost immediately a hue and cry went up. Her record is not legitimate, many suggested. The game is different today. She does not compare to Maravich. An asterisk should be placed by her name.My first encounter with the asterisk occurred in 1961. That was the year that Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle were seriously stalking the single season home run record of one Babe Ruth. Many people did not want to see the Babe's record broken, but Maris did just that by hitting 61 home runs.People wanted an asterisk because Maris' season consisted of more games than the Bambino. The uproar was not as loud as when Mark McGuire broke Maris' record nor when Barry Bonds broke that mark… a live ball and steroids were the main culprits for those asterisk asks.So when the playing field does not seem fair and the new record holder seems to have had an advantage, the requests start coming. The old "yeah, but" arguments come out and occasionally the asterisk appears. I'm of the opinion that we deep six that silly little asterisk and just enjoy the accomplishments of any new record holder. And that includes Caitlin Clark.During the broadcast of the Iowa – Ohio State game, the announcers pointed out the arguments that asterisk lovers would be pointing to when the record fell. Maravich did not play as a freshman as NCAA rules prohibited it. Why? I don't know, but I was not allowed to run cross country as a freshman in high school because people felt two miles was too far to run for someone that young.That rule (along with a serious lack of talent) kept me from being a FOUR time state champion in the sport!Pete Maravich was incredible. I'm old enough to have seen him play many times on TV and even in person once, after he turned professional. So Maravich scored his 3,667 points in three seasons AND without the benefit of the three point line. Did he shoot from long range? Of course he did. That does not change the fact that when you look at the numbers, she scored more points. One can argue that she played under different circumstances. But that's for water cooler discussions. It does not alter the facts and an asterisk is completely unwarranted in my considered opinion.Another player that I always think about when I think of the lack of a three point line is John Rinka. The Kenyon College sharpshooter was just 5'9" tall, but he was phenomenal. He scored 3,251 points in his college career. I've said on these pages in the past that I had the privilege of playing against him in his final home game at Kenyon.He scored 52* in Kenyon's 116-110 win over Hiram College on that night. It was the most exciting athletic event that I am likely to ever witness. The man averaged over 41 points per game his senior season. How many more would he have had if the three point line been in use? It's hard to say, but it would have been closer to 4,000!Back to the game in Iowa City. Caitlin Clark broke Maravich's record on a free throw with .3 of a second left in the first half. If it had not been so significant, the story line might have centered on the fact that Iowa scored six points in that last .3 of a second.On a long pass Iowa's Hannah Stuelke was fouled on a shot attempt with that minuscule amount of time left. Then a questionable technical foul was called on Ohio State's Cotie McMahon. From the angle I saw Caitlin Clark was running to congratulate her teammate and (accidentally?) veered into McMahon, who then shoved her away.Clark flailed her arms and backpedaled away helping to convince the referee to make the call. The call was made and after Stuelke made her two free throws, Clark hit two more from the technical and Iowa still had that little amount of time left.Incredibly a lob to Stuelke resulted in a banked shot that took Iowa's lead from five to eleven at the half in just .3 of a second. If you want to wager that a record may never be broken, here's your chance. A team scoring six points in .3 of a second? It will be hard to top that one.The fact is that watching Caitlin Clark play hoops has been incredible. She has to be given credit for bringing the women's college game to the forefront. It has been a joy to observe and no asterisk is needed to signify her scoring record.As for my use of the *. It is not an asterisk per se, but a footnote to the story. On the night that Rinka scored his 52 points, I had 4. And that begs a question…The question: Was John Rinka THAT much better than me?The Answer: Yep.