UNCASVILLE, Conn. — What’s going to happen for Caitlin Clark is what’s going to happen for the Indiana Fever. That’s been true throughout a remarkable regular season filled with rookie joy, uplifting accomplishments and unexpected victories.
That was true Sunday afternoon, as the harsh realities of the WNBA postseason hit a Fever starting five who had never played in a playoff game before facing the powerful and experienced Connecticut Sun in Game 1.
The day started off strong for Clark, as she finished fourth in WNBA Most Valuable Player voting, an award unanimously won by Las Vegas star A’ja Wilson. Clark also earned three honors from the Associated Press: unanimous selection as Rookie of the Year, All-WNBA First Team and All-Rookie Team.
It was a great morning for Clark. The afternoon wasn’t so great.
Clark was left with bruises, both literally and figuratively, in the 93-69 loss to the Suns. She was poked in the right eye by Suns’ Di’Jonai Carrington 90 seconds into the game, leaving her with a bruise. It’s natural to wonder if that had anything to do with her 4-of-17 shooting performance and 2-of-13 3-pointers, but Clark was quick to deny that theory after the game.
“Obviously we got hit pretty hard. I don’t think it affected us, honestly. We had some good shots and just didn’t make them. Obviously it was a tough time for that to happen. We had some really good chances. We hit a couple of pretty open 3-pointers in the first half that normally go in,” Clark said.
“So it’s tough, but I felt like I fought and did my best and I took care of the ball better than usual (she tied her season low with two turnovers), so that’s a positive.”
Clark said the Fever still had the win in hand until a relentless Sun onslaught late in the game caused things to get out of hand.
“Like coach (Christy Sides) said in the locker room, we were down by three in the first quarter, down by five in the second quarter and then down by another three in the third quarter. That’s just how we were, but it just felt like we played a bad game, our flow in the game was really bad,” she said.
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But when it came to her eyes, she was clear: “I wasn’t worried. Of course, I didn’t feel good when it happened, but that’s the way it is.”
As they prepare for the best-of-three series, the Fever said they want to win with the enthusiasm of youth, and the fruits of the past month – Clark’s adrenaline-fueled performances that have led to a 9-5 post-Olympic record, including an 84-80 win over Connecticut in Indianapolis on Aug. 28 – have capped off the summer with a bang, along with a supporting cast that has lived up to expectations time and time again, including stellar plays from Aaliyah Boston and Lexi Hull.
Could this be the secret to winning short series against much more experienced opponents? Connecticut’s players came into Sunday’s game having played a combined 222 playoff games. The Fever’s entire roster had played just 19.
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The answer to that question became clear as the game went on. Not on this day. Connecticut was just too physical, too good. Clark ended up with 11 points, eight assists, four rebounds and three steals.
Suns coach Stephanie White changed strategy after the loss to Indiana in August, opting to assign 6-foot-4 veteran DeWanna Bonner to the 6-foot-0 Clark.
“Comfort, rhythm, timing, all of that stuff is important in this match,” White said. “What adjustments do you make that hinder some of that? … I’m grateful to (Bonner) for accepting the challenge. It changed the way I look at points, which was really good.”
Connecticut now needs one more win to take the series and beat the Fever, while Indiana must win Game 2 here on Wednesday to advance to a deciding Game 3 in Indiana on Friday.
There was optimism in the Fever camp. “Guys are going to shoot the ball a lot better on Wednesday,” Sides said. “That’s going to make a big difference.”
With just one playoff appearance combined to date, Clark and his teammates will do the only thing they can in this series: They plan to get back to the playoffs soon.
Editor’s note: Christine Brennan is writing a book about Caitlin Clark and the revolution in women’s sports to be published by Scribner in spring/summer 2025.
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