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WNBA playoffs: Caitlin Clark updates, highlights, analysis as Fever face Sun in Game 2

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WNBA playoffs: Caitlin Clark updates, highlights, analysis as Fever face Sun in Game 2

The Indiana Fever’s first playoff game since 2016 didn’t exactly go as planned.

Caitlin Clark and the rest of her team struggled Sunday with their shooting and were routed by a veteran Connecticut Sun squad in Game 1 of their best-of-three first-round series.

Visiting Indiana knows the task at hand in Wednesday’s Game 2 won’t be easy, and recognizes the immense advantage Connecticut has in postseason experience.

From Yahoo Sports’ Cassandra Negley:

Four of the five Fever starters have fewer than three years of any WNBA experience. They all made deep March Madness runs in college, but came into the first-round series with zero combined games of WNBA playoff experience. That includes seven-year veteran guard Kelsey Mitchell.

Caitlin Clark, who is coming off back-to-back Final Fours, said Tuesday the intensity, pressure and win-or-go-home situation are similar to college, but still different as a rookie at the pro level.

“It’s a learning process for me, too,” Clark said. “Obviously, this is my first playoff. It’s a lot of us on this team’s first playoff. We’re all kind of going through it at the same point and learning. You don’t always know what to expect, because a lot of us have never been here.”

WNBA playoffs: Caitlin Clark updates, highlights, analysis as Fever face Sun in Game 2

The Sun grabbed a 93-69 win over Caitlin Clark and the Fever in Game 1 of the series on Sunday. (M. Anthony Nesmith/Icon Sportswire/Getty Images)

The Fever have a chance Wednesday night to survive and extend Clark’s magical rookie season. But they will have to shoot better, impose their will in transition and meet the Sun’s intensity.

Live37 updates

  • TIE BALL GAME

    The cheers lingered long after Clark’s 3 gave Indiana the 71-70 lead. She led Indiana back with a fadeaway, rebound and hockey assist on Fagbenle 3 (Hull gets the assist). She’s up to 25 points, seven assists, six rebounds.

    Marina Mabrey answered on the other end with a 3, Fagbenle ties it at 73 off a Boston assist. It’s going to be a good final three minutes.

  • CAITLIN CLARK GIVES INDIANA THE LEAD ON A 3!

  • 4Q: Sun 68, Fever 63

    Fever have kept it around a seven-point deficit seemingly all of the second half. Dantas and Fagbenle are involved in the offense the last few possessions, but they can’t let the ball get stuck. AT (19p/10a/5r) shut down Fagbenle, who had trouble with ball control, repeatedly on a few possessions back and committed a shot clock violation. Indiana’s defense needs to get stops to make this up and force Game 3.

  • 4Q: Sun 61, Fever 52

    Two more buckets for Thomas (16p/10a/5r) and it’s a nine-point lead for the Sun with seven players in points.

    Clark is up to 20 points, six assists, five rebounds. Boston (12p/17r) and Mitchell (10p) are also in double figures, but Hull is 1-5 from 3-point range and Fagbenle hasn’t scored. The only bemch points are two Wheeler free throws.

  • 3Q 2:03 | Sun 57, Fever 50

    Alyssa Thomas is up to 12 points, 10 assists, four rebounds for the Sun

  • Fever quickly tie it at 41, forcing the Sun to take a timeout at 8:19. Lexie Hull 3 on a Clark assist, Clark drive, Boston cut off a Clark assist

  • HALF: Sun 41, Fever 34

    Caitlin Clark leads all scorers with 14 points (5-12/2-7). She and Kelsey Mitchell (7 points, 3-8 overall) played all 20 minutes of the first half. Clark looked frustrated at the end of the half that Erica Wheeler was bringing the ball up on quick inbound passes from Boston.

    Connecticut has the Fever on the same scoring pace as the first game, which was near a season-low for the Fever. White said pre-game with Mabrey in the starting lineup, they’d have to find her reserve energy elsewhere. That’s clearly Veronica Burton, whose eight points are one off Mabrey’s team-high nine. She’s played 11 minutes.

  • Erica Wheeler went flying into the camera people in front of the VIP section. Everyone on the Fever went over to see her while she remained on the floor a few minutes after the buzzer sounded. They surrounded her with towels and Sides motioned her players toward the locker room. A few minutes later, Wheeler left through another tunnel.

  • 2Q 2:21 | Sun 33, Fever 26

    Hope you’re not here for offense. Sun are winning the battle of styles right now and making it ugly. Each team is shooting about 30% overall, 20% from 3. Clark leads all scorers with 10.

    In good news for the Fever, their 11 fast break points are already more than all of Game 1 (nine). And they’re about tied in paint points after folding there in the first meeting.

  • Christie Sides said yesterday the Fever first needed to handle the Sun’s physicality and that has … not happened. Early foul trouble messed with the Fever’s rotations and chemistry. Fever score back-to-back buckets with Boston back on the floor. Sun lead, 26-20, at 5:52 of the second quarter.

  • 1Q: Sun 17, Fever 14

    Neither team is shooting the ball well (both are 5-20). Connecticut’s defense is getting the job done early; Fever haven’t made a bucket since the 4-minute mark when Clark hit her second 3.

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