Clark, Fever ride record half past Bueckers, Wings

INDIANAPOLIS -- In the highly anticipated archetypal matchup betwixt No. 1 draught picks Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers arsenic pros, it was Clark and the Indiana Fever who were the ones who came retired connected apical Sunday astatine Gainbridge Fieldhouse -- and successful historical fashion.

The Fever rattled disconnected a franchise-record 64 first-half points down a 36-15 2nd quarter, taking power of the crippled and ne'er looking backmost successful a 102-83 victory.

Clark, the 2024 No. 1 wide pick, finished with 13 of Indiana's 30 assists connected 40 makes -- a season-best people for her and a Fever-record for a regularisation game. It was besides Clark's 17th vocation 10-assist game, but her archetypal with nary much than 2 turnovers.

After being sidelined with injuries connected 2 abstracted occasions this play -- and missing the archetypal Fever-Wings matchup successful June -- Clark is inactive looking to rediscover her emblematic shooting form, finishing 4 for 12 from the tract and 2 for 7 connected 3-pointers for 14 points. But the two-time All-Star was pleased with her facilitating and effort connected the antiaircraft end, wherever she helped acceptable the code for the Fever and came distant with 5 steals.

No play got the Fever fans connected their feet much than erstwhile Clark blocked JJ Quinerly's layup effort aboriginal successful the 2nd 4th and past recovered a rim-running Sophie Cunningham with a beauteous three-quarter-court quarterback-esque dime.

"I inactive astir apt didn't sprout it arsenic bully arsenic I would person liked, but I consciousness similar it's coming. Just trying to proceed to get my legs nether me," said Clark, who played her 3rd crippled pursuing a two-week absence. "I thought my playmaking was truly good. There was nary crushed for maine to truly sprout that much. ... [We were] conscionable precise balanced, and radical executed."

Bueckers, the 2025 No. 1 pick, led each scorers with 21 points connected 9 for 15 shooting, bully for the fourth-longest streak of double-figure scoring to commencement a WNBA vocation (17 games). The rookie of the twelvemonth favourite added 4 assists, 4 rebounds and 2 steals, though committed 4 turnovers.

After a back-and-forth archetypal quarter, the Fever clamped down defensively and demolished the Wings successful transition, putting unneurotic a 25-4 tally and yet going into the fractional up 64-42. The 21 points marked Indiana's champion constituent differential successful immoderate 4th since 2016, and the Fever's 64 points were the astir immoderate WNBA squad has scored successful a fractional this season.

Indiana changeable 52% connected the day, scored 23 points disconnected 18 Wings turnovers and tallied a season-high 58 points successful the paint.

"Some turnovers, and past conscionable their physicality successful wide got into us," Dallas manager Chris Koclanes said of his team's second-quarter collapse. "Their physicality really, truly bothered america successful stretches, and benignant of took distant our travel and continuity. But past again, nary excuse for not getting back. I conscionable deliberation we could person had greater effort much consistently successful transitions."

The Fever led by arsenic galore arsenic 29 successful the 3rd 4th and finished with 5 players successful double-figures for the 4th clip this season, led by a combined 55 points from Kelsey Mitchell (20), Natasha Howard (18) and Aliyah Boston (17).

"I deliberation we were conscionable firing each cylinders, moving the shot well, getting to the adjacent action, playing retired a prime and rotation well," Clark said. "And past our defence was bully and got america a batch of buckets successful transition."

Added Indiana manager Stephanie White: "For america to play successful transition, we've got to fastener successful connected the antiaircraft end. And the shot was moving -- we were playing adjacent to .5 hoops successful that 2nd quarter."

After a putrid violative showing connected Wednesday successful which the Fever (11-10) managed conscionable 61 points with a 30% shooting clip, Indiana has present scored 201 points crossed its past 2 games. White said she is "pleased with our progress" arsenic the squad looks to solidify its identity.

Dallas (6-16) saw the instrumentality Sunday of Arike Ogunbowale from a thumb wounded that sidelined her for 3 contests, but the four-time All-Star struggled to find her shooting stroke. She finished with 2 points and missed each 10 attempts from the tract -- her astir tract extremity attempts without a marque successful her career.

"You could archer she hadn't played successful a bit. I privation immoderate [shots] would person fallen aboriginal for her," Koclanes said. "She's got to proceed to find that equilibrium of truly moving hard to get up the level and get spots and get disconnected actions, and past I've got to proceed to assistance her."

Added Bueckers: "This was the champion since I've been present that she's responded to [shooting woes]. It mightiness not person been her nighttime shooting the ball, but the mode she continued to enactment successful the game, not fto it impact her effort connected some ends of the floor, her being a person of this team, that was immense for maine to beryllium capable to spot that."