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The New York Liberty are no longer undefeated, and they can blame Caitlin Clark.
Clark lit up the scoreboard in her return from injury, and the Indiana Fever beat the reigning WNBA champions, 102-88.
The Liberty, who entered the game at 9-0, led by as many as 11 in the first quarter, but then Caitlin Clark happened. Clark missed five games after injuring her quad against this same Liberty team three weeks ago, but she hardly looked rusty.
Clark knocked down six of her first nine 3-pointers and dropped 25 points in the first half, the most she’s ever had in any half in her career. The big blow from that first half, though, was her Reggie Miller-esque stretch during which she went 3-for-3 from deep in a 38-second span. Indiana led 53-50 at the half.
New York scored nine unanswered points to open the second half, but the Fever quickly answered with 19 consecutive points of their own to kick off a wild 25-3 run to lead by 16, their largest of the day.
The Liberty, though, went on a 14-2 run of their own to cut their deficit to just four points. After they eventually made it a three-point game, the game of runs continued, as Indiana scored 17 of the game’s next 21 points to again lead by 16.
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Clark was not able to continue her hot first-half shooting in the second. She scored seven points in the third quarter and went scoreless in the fourth, making just one of her five 3-pointers in the second half.
But Lexie Hull, Damiris Dantas, Sydney Colson and Sophie Cunningham combined to knock down seven of 11 3-pointers (Sophie Cunningham went 3-for-10 from deep). The Fever drained 17 3-pointers, a franchise record, and Clark’s seven tied a career high.
Clark finished with 32 points, the second-most she’s had in a WNBA game. She was one assist away from a double-double, and she also grabbed eight rebounds.
Indiana went 2-3 with Clark shelved and are now 3-2 with her on the floor. Those two losses have come by a combined three points.
The Fever will host the Connecticut Sun Tuesday, while New York will return to the Big Apple for a date with the Atlanta Dream.
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