WNBA Final: Caitlin Clark Makes History in Fever vs. Mystics match

In WNBA final, the Washington Mystics lost a thriller to the Indiana Fever, 85-83, in front of a raucous sold-out Capital One Arena crowd.

After some much needed days off, Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever picked up an impressive win over the Washington Mystics on Friday night. Defeating Washington by a final score of 85-83, Indiana also got a historic night from their star rookie.

Finishing with 30 points, eight rebounds, six assists, four steals, and seven made threes, Clark became the first player in WNBA history to reach that line in a single game.

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For Clark, this was just one way she made history, as her seven threes in this game tied a WNBA record for the most by a rookie in a single game.

Match highlight: WNBA final

Aaliyah Edwards got her fifth start tonight following a career-best performance against Chicago. Edwards was great again tonight and was especially effective on the boards; she finished with 12 rebounds, three of which were offensive.

In spite of the loss, the Mystics played one of their best games of the season: Stefanie Dolson rained threes; Julie Vanloo accented some timely buckets with beautiful no-look passes; Myisha Hines-Allen was like 500 milligrams of pure caffeine off the bench; and though she finished with just 11 points, I would have guessed from watching that Karlie Samuelson had put up 25.

The loss drops the Mystics to 0-11, far and away the worst record in the WNBA. The Fever, meanwhile, advance to 3-9.

Caitlin Clark, the show stealer

Caitlin Clark was absolutely brilliant in today’s game. She finished with a career-high-tying 30 points and knocked down a career-high of eight threes, just one short of tying a WNBA record for three-point makes. She also pitched in eight rebounds, six assists and four steals to tie together her best game as a pro.

Caitlin Clark drains the stepback three off the inbound pass 🪣 pic.twitter.com/2yi91wuxqV
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) June 8, 2024

Every section in Capital One Arena was littered with Caitlin Clark, Iowa Hawkeyes and Indiana Fever jerseys, and entire rows of school-aged girls even showed up in matching Clark jerseys. Every time Clark touched the ball, the arena felt like a something magical is about to happen, and every one of her eight three-pointers blew the cap right off. Even her after-the-whistle three had the crowd on its feet.

Clark has certainly and understandably faced struggles so far in her rookie year — she’s shooting far south of 40% from the field on the year — but her performance against the Mystics demonstrated why she is one of the most sure-thing prospects of all time. She just needed to hit the three to get into a rhythm, and from there the floodgates were wide open.

Beyond her generational shooting touch, Clark affects the game in every facet: she almost never takes bad shots, she is a phenomenal passer, she is an excellent rebounder for her size and frame and she is incredibly calm and collected under pressure. Caitlin Clark is the future of the WNBA.

make that seven threes for Caitlin Clark 🤯 pic.twitter.com/zijJkHnOY1
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) June 8, 2024

While there have been a lot of contentious discussions surrounding Clark to begin her WNBA career, one thing everybody can agree on is how impressive her play has been. Having experienced some of the natural ups and downs that come with beginning a professional career, Clark has found a way to bounce back each time she has struggled.