Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever arrived in Las Vegas with high hopes of taking down the defending champion Las Vegas Aces, but things didn’t unfold as they had envisioned once the game began.
The night before the matchup, several players took some time to relax-partly to shake off pre-game nerves and partly to enjoy a city that never fails to entertain, especially once the lights come on.
Clark struggles in quiet night on the court
From the outset, the Fever vs. Aces matchup promised big performances, high scores, and highlight-reel plays on both ends of the floor. What no one expected, however, was for Caitlin Clark to have such an off night.
In Indiana’s 89-81 loss, Clark went just 1-for-10 from beyond the arc and 7-for-20 from the field-well below the standard fans have come to expect from the star rookie.
Her performance felt eerily similar to the one on June 19 against the Golden State Valkyries, where she went 0-for-7 from the field. In Las Vegas, it was nearly a repeat.
After Sunday’s frustrating outing, it’s clear the West Coast swing hasn’t been kind to Clark. These last few days are best left in the rearview mirror as the Fever prepare to regroup and refocus ahead of their next game on Tuesday, June 24, against the Seattle Storm.
Following the loss, Clark was candid in assessing her own performance:
I mean, there are going to be stretches that are really good and there’s going to be stretches that aren’t as good. And obviously it’s frustrating. You want them to go in, and even tonight, I felt like there was a few that felt really good off my hand, and it just didn’t go down.
She continued:
So it’s just like, it’s just frustrating… I think the challenge for myself going forward is just [to] continue to pour into every other aspect of the game, and I can continue to have an impact in all those other areas. I thought I got to the rim well, it was just certainly a tough shooting night. And, you know, you’ve got to find a way to continue to shoot and remain confident in myself, because I know I’ve put the time in… I don’t feel like it’s anything that’s off, necessarily. But yeah, would be nice if [the shots] went down,” she concluded.
Hard work, and more hard work
While things didn’t go according to plan on this short West Coast road trip, the results make it clear: the team needs to work harder for more consistent performances-both as a unit and individually.
Getting back to fundamentals, especially shooting reps from various spots on the floor, will be critical in improving efficiency, scoring more points, and ultimately winning more games.
It’s a cold dose of reality and time to move on. The WNBA’s relentless pace leaves little room for regret-only opportunities to learn and keep moving forward.
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