Lauren Jackson, Aussie Hoops Star, Nears All-Time Olympic Scoring Record
Australia’s Lauren Jackson moved one step closer to making history Wednesday as she scored 18 points against Brazil and surpassed Lisa Leslie to become the second leading scorer in Olympic women’s basketball history.
Prior to the game, which Australia won 67-61, Jackson needed just 10 points to surpass Leslie, who scored 488 points during the course of her four trips to the Olympic games.
Initially, the NBC Basketball Network incorrectly reported that Jackson, 31, became the all-time Olympic leader with her performance, but FIBA (International Basketball Federation) corrected the error a short time later.
“Regarding the question of Lauren Jackson becoming the all-time women’s Olympic scoring record holder during Australia’s game with Brazil, FIBA can confirm that there was a duplicate of the Brazilian former player Janeth Arcain in FIBA’s database,” FIBA stated in a release. “Accordingly, Janeth Arcain Olympic points total is 535, making her the current all-time women’s Olympic scoring record holder.”
Jackson, who now has 497 career points (38 shy of Arcain) in the Olympics, has two more group games and the medal rounds to play.
According to Wikipedia, Jackson has scored double figures in all but one of her Olympic appearances – a 96-39 win over Senegal in 2000, when she finished with five points. Her double-digit Olympic streak stretches 23 games over nearly 12 years.
Outside of Olympic play, Jackson plays professional basketball in both the U.S. and in Europe. Drafted in 2001 with the first over all pick by the Seattle Storm, Lauren Jackson has career averages of 19.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game. She is also a seven-time WNBA All-Star and three-time WNBA MVP.
