Clark sets record, Mitchell again scores over 20 goals and leads Fever

Indiana’s Caitlin Clark broke the WNBA rookie record for 3-pointers made in a season, and teammate Kelsey Mitchell became the first Fever player to score 20 or more points in five straight games. On Wednesday night, the Fever beat Connecticut 84-80 in Indianapolis, ending their 11-game losing streak to the Sun.

The Fever climbed to 15-16 after starting the season 1-8. Their 12-6 record since June 10 is the third-best record in the WNBA during that span, trailing only New York and Minnesota.

Indiana is on the verge of clinching its first playoff berth since 2016, when it finished 17-17. The WNBA switched to a 40-game season last year.

The Sun fell to 22-8 after losing to Indiana for the first time since July 3, 2021.

“The maturity and toughness my players showed tonight was just incredible,” said Fever coach Christie Sides. “We see them grow from where we started to where we are now. Connecticut is an incredible team. I’m so proud of these players.”

Mitchell, the No. 2 overall pick in 2018, scored 23 points. She has scored 128 points in her last five games, in which Indiana is 4-1.

Clark had 19 points, 5 assists and 5 rebounds to become the first WNBA player to record 15-5-5 in six consecutive games. It was her 10th consecutive game with at least 15 points and 5 assists, tying Phoenix’s Diana Taurasi (2010) for the longest such streak in league history.

Clark’s three three-pointers gave her 88 in 31 games this season. Atlanta’s Rhyne Howard, the No. 1 overall pick and 2022 Rookie of the Year, previously held the record of 85, which she made in 34 games.

Clark previously set the WNBA rookie season assist record. At Iowa, she made 548 3-pointers and scored 3,951 points, both NCAA Division I records.

“I think that speaks to our offensive strategy,” Clark said of her three-point success against the Fever. “Just fast, fast paced. I feel like I can definitely shoot a little better.”

Clark missed her final 3-point attempt on Wednesday with a shot that nearly went through the basket before going out of bounds. She said she was disappointed about that, but overall she was happy with her shot selection.

“I felt like the ball was in,” Clark said with a grin. “That bothered me a little bit. But I feel like I’m making good shots, and that’s the most important thing for this team.”

Clark’s on-court connection with fellow teammate Mitchell has been especially strong since WNBA play resumed following the Olympic break. The Fever franchise’s superstar is Hall of Famer Tamika Catchings, who was the 2011 WNBA MVP and led Indiana to the league title in 2012. But Mitchell’s streak of five 20-point games is something even Catchings hasn’t accomplished.

“That’s really, really hard to do in this league,” Clark said of Mitchell. “In my eyes, she’s one of the most underrated players. She’s very consistent every night. She shows up, she performs … she’s always someone I can count on, and it’s been a lot of fun building our chemistry over the course of this season.”