Former Iowa Star Quietly Reaches Major WNBA Milestone Ahead of Caitlin Clark Showdown
For years, she dominated college basketball in Iowa City, piled up points at a historic pace, and left behind a legacy that few believed would ever be touched.
Now, after years of grinding through an unpredictable professional journey, former Iowa women’s basketball star Megan Gustafson has quietly reached a major WNBA career milestone and it happened just before a highly anticipated showdown with fellow Hawkeye legend Caitlin Clark.
While much of the national spotlight continues to follow Clark’s rapid rise with the Indiana Fever, Gustafson is building a strong story of her own in the WNBA. It may not always generate the same headlines, but the former Iowa center has continued carving out a meaningful career through persistence, patience, and steady production.
On Friday night, Gustafson officially crossed the 800-point mark in her WNBA career during the Portland Fire’s home matchup against the Atlanta Dream, another significant achievement for one of Iowa’s most decorated players.
The milestone came in Portland’s loss to Atlanta, but Gustafson still delivered an efficient performance off the bench. In 18 minutes of action, the veteran forward-center scored 10 points while grabbing five rebounds, continuing what has quietly become one of the most productive stretches of her professional basketball career.
For longtime Iowa Hawkeyes fans, seeing Gustafson continue to thrive at the professional level carries extra meaning.
Long before Caitlin Clark rewrote record books in Iowa City, Gustafson stood as the face of Iowa women’s basketball. Her scoring dominance inside the paint made her one of the most feared players in the nation and helped elevate the Hawkeyes program into national conversations.
By the time her Iowa career ended, Gustafson had scored an astonishing 2,804 career points, cementing herself as the program’s all-time leading scorer at the time. That historic mark stood for years before Clark eventually surpassed it during her legendary college run.
Even after Clark moved past her in the record books, Gustafson’s place in Iowa basketball history never disappeared. Instead, it evolved. She became part of the foundation that helped establish Iowa as a national women’s basketball powerhouse a legacy that continues to grow.
Still, transitioning from college stardom to the WNBA wasn’t easy.
Unlike her dominant collegiate run, Gustafson’s professional path came with challenges. Minutes were harder to find. Roles changed often. Teams shifted. Opportunities sometimes disappeared just as quickly as they appeared.
Selected in the second round of the 2019 WNBA Draft by the Dallas Wings, Gustafson entered the league with plenty of expectations. But professional basketball rarely follows a straight path.
She spent her first two seasons in Dallas, working to establish herself while adjusting to the speed and physicality of the WNBA. After her time with the Wings, Gustafson’s career turned into something of a basketball journey across the league.
Over the next several seasons, she suited up for multiple franchises, spending time with the Washington Mystics and Phoenix Mercury before eventually landing with the Las Vegas Aces.
That stop in Las Vegas turned out to be especially important.
While she wasn’t the centerpiece of the Aces roster, Gustafson embraced a valuable role coming off the bench during the 2025 season. Her energy, rebounding, and scoring efficiency helped provide depth to one of the league’s strongest teams as Las Vegas captured the WNBA championship.
Championship experience often changes players, and Gustafson appears to have carried that momentum into the next phase of her career.
This past offseason, the Portland Fire one of the WNBA’s newest franchises rewarded her growth with a two-year contract, giving the veteran a fresh opportunity to expand her role.
So far, the move appears to be paying off.
Nine games into the season, Gustafson is averaging a career-best 9.1 points per game, a notable jump that reflects both increased confidence and consistent opportunity. Even more impressive has been her efficiency around the basket.
She’s shooting an outstanding 59.3% from the field, continuing the same smart, high-percentage scoring style that made her nearly unstoppable during her Iowa days.
For Portland, Gustafson has become a dependable contributor off the bench the type of veteran player championship-caliber teams rely on.
Her 800-point milestone may not dominate national headlines, but it speaks volumes about longevity and perseverance in one of the world’s toughest basketball leagues.
Only a small percentage of college stars manage to build lasting WNBA careers. Many talented players struggle to remain in rotations, while others bounce between contracts and overseas opportunities.
Gustafson has faced many of those same obstacles, yet she’s continued finding ways to stay valuable.
That resilience makes this latest accomplishment even more meaningful.
At 29 years old, Gustafson appears to be playing some of the most confident basketball of her professional career. If her current scoring pace continues, another impressive benchmark could arrive sooner than expected.
The former Hawkeye is now positioned to potentially reach 1,000 career WNBA points later this season, a milestone that would further strengthen her professional résumé and highlight just how far she has come since entering the league seven years ago.
And fittingly, her next challenge comes against a very familiar face.
On Saturday night, Gustafson and the Portland Fire are set to face Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever in a rematch following Indiana’s victory over Portland last week.
The matchup carries extra intrigue for Iowa fans.
Two of the greatest players in Hawkeyes women’s basketball history will share the floor again — one a veteran still proving she belongs, the other a rising superstar already reshaping expectations in the WNBA.
Clark, who has continued adding milestones of her own with Indiana, was recently listed as probable on the Fever injury report once again. Assuming she plays, fans can expect another must-watch meeting between familiar Iowa legends now competing on professional basketball’s biggest stage.
Tipoff between the Fever and Fire is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT and will air nationally on CBS.
For Gustafson, though, the moment carries extra significance.
Before stepping onto the court against one of Iowa’s brightest modern stars, she’ll do so having quietly reached a career achievement that reflects years of persistence, adaptation, and determination.
The road hasn’t always been smooth.
It hasn’t always been glamorous either.
But 800 WNBA points later, Megan Gustafson is still proving exactly why her name remains one of the most respected in Iowa basketball history.
