The Indiana Fever fell to their first defeat in six games on Friday night despite Caitlin Clark smashing yet another record in the WNBA.
Clark put up 25 points as the Fever suffered a 99-88 loss against the Minnesota Lynx, who were also the last team to beat them back on August 24.
While Indiana’s win streak may be over, their rookie sensation still managed to set a new franchise record after hitting her 103rd three-pointer of the season.
No other player in Fever history has ever surpassed 102 three-pointers in a single campaign, and Clark still has another five regular-season games to improve on her tally.
Minnesota, who already secured a playoff berth last month, moved to 24-9 for the season largely thanks to a 26-point haul from Napheesa Collier.
The Indiana Fever fell to their first defeat in six games on Friday night despite Caitlin Clark smashing yet another record
Collier registered a double-double on the night after also adding 10 rebounds to help the Lynx see off the Fever.
Bridget Carleton was on hand with 16 points, while Courtney Williams (15) and Alanna Smith (13) also enjoying positive evenings.
As well as Clark’s 25 points, Kelsey Mitchell put up 23 and Aliyah Boston registered 20 for the Fever.
Despite their defeat, Indiana had also secured a playoff spot before Friday’s game after losses for the Chicago Sky and the Atlanta Dream sealed their place in the postseason on Wednesday.
Clark has not tired of smashing records in her rookie season with the Fever. Just two days ago, the 22-year-old became the fastest WNBA player of all time to reach 100 three-pointers in a season when she did so in just 34 games.
She is also one of just six players to ever hit 100, joining Sabrina Ionescu, Diana Taurasi, Arike Ogunbowale, Jewell Loyd, Kelsey Plum and teammate Kelsey Mitchell in the history books.
Among those players, Clark is the only one to also post 200 assists.
Clark put up 25 points as the Fever suffered a 99-88 loss against the Minnesota Lynx
Napheesa Collier (right) was on hand with 26 points to help Minnesota claim the victory
The former Iowa college star is enjoying a breathtaking debut WNBA season, having broken endless records while bringing historic levels of attention to women’s basketball.
As a result, WNBA icon Nancy Lieberman has even compared her to pop megastar Taylor Swift.
‘It doesn’t matter who people fancy at the moment. It’s Caitlin Clark. She is the Taylor Swift of women’s basketball right now,’ Lieberman said on Sirius XM’s NBA radio station.
‘Her fans are like “Swifties”, they’re extraordinarily loyal. And in every arena you go into, half the people there are her fans wearing her jerseys.
‘She’s a media superstar, but damn… she backs it up every step of the way. Her numbers are unreal what she’s done, whether it’s the second triple-double, leading the league in assists.’
