It was win-or-go-home for Caitlin Clark, and she went down swinging.
The season came to an end for Clark and the Indiana Fever with a 94-83 loss to A’ja Wilson and the reigning champion Las Vegas Aces in Thursday’s decisive Game 3.
Wilson led the charge with 36 points in the winning effort, dropping 21 by halftime.
The Fever kept it within single digits until the final two minutes, but the shots just didn’t fall down the stretch. Clark — the AP Comeback Player of the Year — finished with 18 points on 6-of-18 shooting.
Still, Indiana fought hard to save their season against the reigning champs, headlined by Clark’s raw grit.
Down 82-77 in the fourth quarter with 3:16 remaining, Clark took a sharp elbow to the face from Jewell Loyd.
With her mouth bleeding profusely, she quickly ran back onto the court, fiercely fighting back against head coach Stephanie White and game officials just to stay on the floor.
Drama was at a fever pitch coming into Thursday’s decisive game in Vegas.
A’ja Wilson’s technical foul in Game 2 was the talk of the town, largely overshadowing Caitlin Clark’s historic postseason milestones.
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Aces coach Becky Hammon was asked about the Wilson aftermath, which saw her step over and beyond the sideline to confront a fan in the stands. Though clear arguments were made for a suspension, the WNBA made a business decision, looking the other way to leave Wilson untouched by the incident.
Speaking on Thursday, Hammon doubled down on her support for her superstar:
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“I think you saw A’ja get pushed and shoved and there was no response. So there just comes a certain point where a lot of variables come into the exchange that happened the other night.
“I stand 10 toes down with the character of A’ja Wilson. And it’s like if someone said, ‘hey, your brother went and did something.’ Like, no, I know the person in the situation, so I trust that person in any situation. And she’ll be great tonight. I have no doubt.”
The biggest loser in all of this? Fever head coach Stephanie White.
In her second season back in Indiana, White proved she’s just a corporate stooge when things get ugly. While opponents treated Caitlin Clark and Sophie Cunningham like punching bags, White hid behind spineless PR fluff instead of defending her stars.
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In a league that constantly ignores dirty play against its top draw, White refused to go to bat for her team, showing a complete lack of backbone when her players needed a fighter on the bench.
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Despite the coaching headaches, the Fever roster still had enough talent to finish 28-16 as the sixth seed.
In what could be her final game for Indiana, guard Sophie Cunningham played 24 minutes, scoring just five points (2-of-4 FG). Her biggest impact this season went far beyond the score, gaining widespread notoriety for standing firm for her values off the court.
The Fever played out their final minutes in frustration, knowing a hard-fought year was coming to an end.
Across the three-game series, Clark averaged 20.0 points, 9.7 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game.
That came on the heels of a dominant Year 3 regular season where she averaged 22.3 points, 8.3 assists, and 4.0 rebounds per game. Still searching for her first career playoff series win, Clark has already set the stage for a full-on revenge tour in Year 4.
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