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Caitlin Clark return: Indiana star makes history, downs undefeated Liberty in first game back

Chandler Vesselsby: Chandler Vessels06/14/25ChandlerVessels
caitlin clark
Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

Caitlin Clark returned to the WNBA on Saturday afternoon against the New York Liberty, and it was as if she never left. The Indiana Fever star showed no rust, leading her team to a 102-88 victory against the previously unbeaten Liberty behind a scorching first-half performance.

Clark, who missed the past five games due to a quad injury, scored a career-best 25 points in the first half, including 6-of-8 from 3-point range. Clark ended the game with 32 points along with nine assists and eight rebounds. The Fever hit 17 3-pointers as a team, which was two shy of the WNBA regular season record.

“I feel good,” Clark said postgame. “I thought my rotations were good. Steph (coach Stephanie White) got me a couple of breathers. But I feel strong, I feel good. I thought we played a good game. I thought there was a lot we could improve on, which is really positive for us. But that’s how the Fever are supposed to play basketball. Up-tempo, unselfish, working for your teammates. So really proud of our group.”

Clark did not appear to be limited much in her first game back as she still played 31 minutes, only slightly below her season average of 35. That included a long rest in the fourth quarter after the Fever had taken control of the game.

Even with Caitlin Clark’s big first half performance, Indiana led only 53-50 at halftime. New York opened the third quarter on a 9-0 run to take a 59-53 lead as their defense was more effective at stopping Clark from scoring.

But the second-year superstar out of Iowa found other ways to impact the game, getting her teammates involved for six second-half assists. That in turn lead to a 19-0 run for the Fever to take a double-digit lead, after which they never trailed again.

The win moves the Fever into first place in the Eastern Conference in the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup standings. Both Indiana and New York have 3-1 records in Commissioner’s Cup games, but the Fever now own the head-to-head tiebreaker. The top team from the Eastern Conference will play the top team from the Western Conference in the Commissioner’s Cup Championship on July 1 with a $500,000 prize at stake.

“It’s something for us to build on,” Clark said. “One step at a time. Our schedule picks up quite a bit here where we play quite a few games in a short amount of time. So just continue to build and get better every single day. But this was a good one for us.”