The Indiana Fever picked up their ninth win of the season over the New York Liberty as Caitlin Clark put her name in the WNBA record books permanently. With a 10th rebound with seven minutes remaining adding to her 15 points and 11 assists, Clark became the first rookie in WNBA history to record a triple-double.
Clark finished with 19 points, 12 rebounds and 13 assists in the 83-78 win. Fittingly, the first triple-double of the former Iowa Hawkeye's career came in her 22nd WNBA game.
Clark also made history for the Fever as the first player in franchise history to record a triple-double.
The history was nearly made six days beforehand as Clark came just one rebound short of recording her first triple-double in a win over the Phoenix Mercury.
This should give Clark a significant advantage in the race for the WNBA Rookie of the Year. Unsurprisingly, the race is largely between Clark and Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese.
Not accounting for Saturday's games, Clark is averaging 16 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 7.1 assists per game while Reese is averaging 13.9 points, 11.7 rebounds, and 1.9 assists. While Reese is averaging a double-double, the Fever have surged as a team since beating the Sky for the first time on June 1. Since then, the Fever are 7-5 while Clark seemed to have found her footing with the professionals.
Reese will certainly have her supporters, and for good reason, Clark could mount an insurmountable lead with each subsequent triple-double. Each one sets a record that would prove difficult to be borken in the near future. Setting such a precident is difficult to ignore when voters are deciding their choice for ROTY.
Clark and the Fever will host the Washington Mystics in their next matchup on Wednesday, July 10. The Fever beat the Mystics in their first two meetings.
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