Caitlin Clark leads Fever in scoring, however Indiana falls in exhibition – IndyStar

DALLAS — Down three factors to the Dallas Wings with three seconds left, Indiana already had a sport plan: go to Fever rookie sensation Caitlin Clark.
The No. 1 decide, who led the Fever in factors Friday evening, had a whole lot of these late-game experiences in her Iowa profession. However this was the primary time that she was doing it as a professional. Hounded by the Wings protection, Fever guard Lexie Hull could not inbound the ball to Clark. As a substitute, she obtained it to Erica Wheeler, who put it in Clark’s arms with lower than a second left.
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The shot was off-balance, and it fell brief, and the Fever misplaced their first preseason sport to the Wings, 79-76. Nonetheless, Clark was the one to beat.
Listed here are three observations from Caitlin Clark’s preseason WNBA debut:
In her first WNBA sport, Clark already skilled one thing distinctive to skilled basketball: a leap ball tip. Clark was triple-teamed by the Wings within the paint in an try to get the ball, and officers known as for a leap between the 6-0 rookie and 6-7 WNBA veteran Teaira McCowan.
Because it was known as, Clark appeared over at coach Christie Sides, shrugging her shoulders. As anticipated, too, she didn’t win the tip.
Taking pictures-wise Clark checked out dwelling. There have been some occasions the place the elevated physicality of the WNBA appeared to frustrate her, however she did not let her cease that from doing what she does finest: 3-pointers.
Her first shot was a 3-pointer, and it went by way of the online to loud cheers from Clark supporters within the crowd. She nailed a stepback 3-pointer over Natasha Howard, the 2019 WNBA Defensive Participant of the Yr, and led all scorers with 16 factors by halftime.
Clark struggled with foul bother within the second half, choosing up her fourth on the under-5 mark of the third quarter. The physicality additionally affected her passing, a class during which she is normally unstoppable; she had simply two assists in comparison with 5 turnovers.
She completed the sport with 21 factors on 6-of-15 taking pictures from the ground, together with 5-of-13 from 3, in 28 minutes.
Sides has at all times been a stickler on protection — it was one thing she needed to give attention to final 12 months, however the Fever completed eleventh within the league typically protection. This 12 months, she’s decided to enhance that quantity. And she or he obtained various outcomes on Friday evening.
Indiana opened the sport on a 14-3 run, capped off by two Clark 3-pointers, and it appeared just like the Fever had been on their option to a powerful defensive exhibiting. Then, Dallas went on a 23-9 run by way of the remainder of the quarter, headlined by Arike Ogunbowale and Jaelyn Brown.
With the assistance of Fever rookie Celeste Taylor’s protection on Ogunbowale to begin the second quarter, the Fever settled in a bit on the defensive finish. Indiana allowed 14 factors to the Wings within the second quarter, in comparison with 24 within the first.
Indiana managed to remain simply barely forward of the Wings for a lot of the second half, at the same time as Sides was experimenting with totally different lineups and giving her starters some relaxation. Ogunbowale’s 3-pointer with 4 seconds left gave the Wings a slim margin of victory.
Whereas this sport is one in all simply two occasions Fever gamers will have the ability to play towards true opponents earlier than the season begins, Indiana did not have its full beginning lineup to fit into the sport.
Kelsey Mitchell, who will possible play the two, has not but participated in coaching camp due to an ankle harm she suffered whereas getting ready for 3×3 camp final month. She is taken into account day-to-day, and she or he went by way of dynamic heat ups throughout Friday morning’s shootaround. Katie Lou Samuelson was a late scratch from the sport, tweaking her ankle throughout pregame warmups.
So, Indiana needed to adapt. The Fever have yet another preseason sport with an opportunity to work its whole startling lineup — if Samuelson and Mitchell are wholesome.
Indiana will play the Atlanta Dream on May 9 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

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