ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — More than three hours before Caitlin Clark made her WNBA debut with the Indiana Fever in a preseason game against the Dallas Wings on Friday night, among the packed crowd was No. 2. Some fans lined up outside the arena wearing sweatshirts. University of Iowa jersey number 22.
And Clark put on a show.
The two-time NCAA Women's Basketball Player of the Year led all scorers in the first half with 16 points in 16 minutes and finished with a team-high 21 points in the Fever's 79-76 loss. Ta. She made 6 of 15 field goals, including 5 of 13 from deep, with three rebounds, two assists, four fouls and five turnovers.
Her 21 points were tied for a game-high with Dallas rookie Jaelyn Brown.
“My biggest goal going into tonight was to continue to be myself and play aggressively,” Clark said. “I thought that's what I did. I think there's a lot to be proud of.
“The crowd was great all night. That's what you'd expect with a sellout. The crowds will be the same all year. So whether they're rooting for you or rooting for you. You better get used to it.”
She even had a chance to take the game into overtime. Dallas' Arike Ogunbowale scored the winning goal with three seconds left, and Clark's 3-point shot from the right corner at the buzzer fell short.
“I couldn't ask for a better game,” Clark said.
Clark's first professional basketball goal came less than a minute into play, when the defense briefly lost on a baseline inbounds play and he made a 28-foot 3-pointer near the left sideline.
“We were able to get a pretty clean look on the first shot,” she said. “When you’re a shooter, it’s always nice to see that first shot go in.”
She made four 3-pointers in the first half and added 2 of 3 free throws when she was fouled on a shot from behind the arc.
She was scoreless in the third period but sat through the final five minutes after collecting her fourth foul.
Christina Edge, who lived in Iowa for 35 years before moving to the Dallas suburb of Rowlett three years ago, was one of the early fans. She said arriving early at the University of Texas at Arlington's College Park Center will increase her chances of getting a photo taken with the basketball phenomenon.
“It's my birthday,” said Edge, whose son gave him the tickets as a birthday present. “I just want to take a picture with her!” She held up a bright yellow sign advertising her petition.
Nine-year-old Palin Amos was also outside the arena wearing a yellow Clark jersey with her signature, “I want to be like her when I grow up.''
Pailin's mother, Rebecca Amos, drove about an hour from the town of Ennis.
“I was watching her (on TV) like crazy,” Rebecca said. “So she (Palin) kind of grew up. Then we were like, 'Wow, she's in Dallas now.' I actually got to meet her!
Clark received enthusiastic applause when he was introduced along with Indiana's starters before tipoff.
Although Clark had many fans in attendance, Wings fans did not give her a pass. As she dribbled past defenders in the middle of the court in the first half, a woman yelled, “Get her!” Catch her girlfriend!
The WNBA's first preseason game was played on the same night as the NBA's Dallas Mavericks hosted the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 6 of a first-round playoff series approximately 32 miles away.
The exhibition game was the first of two Fever games before Clark made his regular season debut on May 14 against the Connecticut Sun.
The game was announced on Dallas' schedule by Wings president and CEO Greg Bibb, especially after Clark announced in February that he was leaving college for the WNBA with one year of eligibility remaining. Immediately after, all 6,251 seats were sold out. Indiana won the lottery for this year's No. 1 pick last December.
A local television crew filmed the Fever arriving at DFW International Airport on Thursday. During Clark's media session Friday morning, she mentioned being asked to sign an ultrasound photo of her couple.
“It was definitely a first,” she said with a laugh.
Other WNBA players welcomed her.
“It's really great that Kaitlyn has brought so much attention to women's basketball, and we're so grateful for her,” Wings center Kalani Brown said.
“This has been a given for women's basketball for quite some time,” said Fever center Aliyah Boston, last season's WNBA Rookie of the Year and College Player of the Year. She said, “Better late than never. I'm really excited to see what happens in this league.”
The Wings announced last month that their season ticket allotment of approximately 2,500 seats had been sold out.
Indiana University will return to College Park Center and play twice during the regular season. The teams will play July 17, the day after the MLB All-Star Game, in the WNBA's last game before the nearly month-long Olympic hiatus, at the Texas Rangers' home stadium less than three miles away. The Fever will also play there on September 1st.
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