Caitlin Clark’s Teammate Made a Surprising Personal Request After Fever vs. Liberty
By Madie Chandler | FeverBasketball.com
It should not be surprising that the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer can cut up a defense. That’s why nobody was surprised when Caitlin Clark sank a fourth-quarter free throw on Tuesday night to give her 23 points – eclipsing her previous career-high of 22 points – and went on to score seven more en route to her first 30-point outing as a professional player in Indiana’s 88-82 loss to Los Angeles.
Thirteen of Clark’s 30 points came at the free throw line – a mark that indicates her aggression as a driver – as she opened opportunities for her teammates from long-range by collapsing the defense in the paint. “I just played with an aggressive mindset,” Clark said. “I think that was the biggest thing. I just tried to play downhill the best I could.”
Clark’s aggressive mindset translated across the court as she notched three blocks and three steals on the defensive side of the ball. Clark is an offensive powerhouse and the engine of the Indiana Fever, but her game against the Sparks marked her most complete game as a pro for her play on the defensive end. She’s had multiple 20-point nights – her most recent came last Wednesday in Seattle – but never as scrappy a defensive stand as Tuesday’s matchup with Los Angeles.
“I think my defense has improved quite a bit,” Clark said. “People will probably pick on my defense quite a bit. And you know, there’s times where it’s good and there’s times where I’m still learning and growing.” Her three steals and three blocks nearly outshined Clark’s 30 points, five rebounds, and six assists – she’s just the fourth WNBA player in history to hit those numbers in a game. Her timely steals and momentum-shifting blocks gave the Fever a glimpse of future defensive prowess.
Clark led Indiana with her trio of blocked shots and combined with Kristy Wallace for seven of the Fever’s 12 total steals. Despite the impressive individual defensive statistics, Indiana couldn’t overcome an 11-0 fourth-quarter punch from Los Angeles to end the game.
“I think that was huge that they put 11 points together right there,” Clark said of the Sparks’ fourth-quarter blow. “We played good defense, honestly, through the entire third. [We] held them to 11 points and [then] they put 11 points on us really quick.”
Sides, a defensive-minded coach, emphasized the importance of Indiana’s defense as a catalyst for offense before Tuesday’s contest. “We’ve got to let our defense give us some offense,” Sides said pregame. “We’ve got to get stops, we’ve got to get steals, and we got to hit deflections. And we’ve got to use that because of the way we play and our pace…get out and get some things happening on the offensive end because of our defense.”
The Fever forced the Sparks to cough up the ball 20 times and tallied 24 points off of turnovers, but capitalized on fastbreaks just four times, scoring 11 fastbreak points to the Sparks’ 12. With a young team and a grueling schedule to begin the season, Indiana will look to continue to implement tougher schemes as players become acquainted with each other and the organization. Small defensive gems like Clark’s Tuesday night performance serve as glimmers of hope for the still-building team.
“Defensively we’re able to do things that we haven’t been able to do before,” coach Christie Sides said pregame. “We just didn’t feel comfortable, not having practices. So we’ve been able to add some different schemes to our defensive toolbag.”
The updated defensive approach from Indiana held Los Angeles to just 13 points in the second quarter, but couldn’t prevent the Sparks from catching fire from the 3-point line. Los Angeles made 14 of their 23 3-point shots, good for nearly 61% beyond the arc. The Fever will have to dig deep to bounce back, however, as three contests remain before any significant downtime in their schedule.
Indiana will return to Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Thursday to take on Seattle in the season series’ second game before competing in back-to-back matchups on Saturday and Sunday in the WNBA’s Commissioner’s Cup.
Caitlin Clark, the prolific shooting guard from Iowa who set the NCAA all-time scoring mark and ushered in a newfound popularity for women’s basketball that reaped records for attendance and television viewership, was selected No. 1 overall in the WNBA draft by the Indiana Fever on Monday night. The 22-year-old native of West Des Moines, Iowa, electrified crowds wherever she played this season because of her shooting range, regularly hitting logo 3-pointers with ease, and her playmaking ability, routinely setting up teammates for easy scores.
Clark joins a Fever team with 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year Aliyah Boston. The Fever finished 13-27 last season and missed the postseason in each of the past seven seasons. But an inside-outside combination of Clark and Boston, who was the No. 1 pick in last year’s draft, could propel Indiana back to the playoffs once again. “My point guard eyes light up at that,” Clark said after the Fever officially selected her Monday night. “I’m just gonna feed Aliyah the ball every game … That’s what I’m gonna do. I can’t wait to be her teammate again.”
College basketball’s all-time leading scorer is not the only big-named player who walked the orange carpet at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. LSU’s Angel Reese, the “Bayou Barbie” who created a rivalry with Clark in last year’s title game, and Stanford’s Cameron Brink, the Pac-12 Player of the Year, are going pro as well. Boston’s former teammate Kamilla Cardoso, who was named the Final Four Most Outstanding player after beating Clark in the national championship, was also on the draft board.
USA TODAY Sports provided updates and analysis on picks throughout the night. Read below the photo gallery for a recap of all the picks and the highlights. Indiana Fever select Caitlin Clark with No. 1 pick in 2024 WNBA draft. NEW YORK — Caitlin Clark, the prolific shooting guard from Iowa who set the NCAA all-time scoring mark and ushered in a newfound popularity for women’s basketball that reaped records for attendance and television viewership, was selected No. 1 overall in the WNBA Draft by the Indiana Fever on Monday night.
Clark joins a Fever team with 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year Aliyah Boston. The Fever finished 13-27 last season and missed the postseason in each of the past seven seasons. Now, the Fever already are seeing action at sportsbooks as being one of the few betting favorites to win the championship. The 22-year-old native of West Des Moines, Iowa, electrified crowds wherever she played this season because of her shooting range, regularly hitting logo 3-pointers with ease, and her playmaking ability, routinely setting up teammates for easy scores.
Clark led the Hawkeyes to a second consecutive national championship game appearance, where they lost to South Carolina. While doing so, she led the nation in eight offensive categories, including scoring 31.6 points per game, 3-point makes and 3-point attempts. She also ranked second in assists per game while averaging 7.4 rebounds. She finished her career with 3,951 points, and a record 548 3-point makes. She leaves Iowa with an impressive individual trophy haul, winning the AP Player of the Year award, Wooden Award, and Naismith Award twice each.
The anticipation of Clark coming into the league is virtually unmatched, with teams changing venues for Fever games and selling out tickets in anticipation of her playing in their cities. The Connecticut Sun, which open their season against the Fever at home, sold nearly 800 tickets within 24 hours of the schedule being released. The Las Vegas Aces, the two-time defending champions, moved their July 2 home game against Indiana from the 12,000-seat Michelob Ultra Arena to T-Mobile Arena, which has a capacity of 20,000.
Even the WNBA Draft, which was open to fans for the first time in eight years, sold out its 1,000 ticket allotment at the Brooklyn Academy of Music within 15 minutes of going on sale. — Scooby Axson Caitlin Clark shares her thoughts after being drafted No. 1 overall. Caitlin Clark spoke at length after being selected by the Indiana Fever with the No. 1 overall pick in Monday night’s draft. Read what college basketball’s all-time leading scorer said after she was drafted in this Q&A here.
Source: FeverBasketball.com, USA TODAY Sports
