INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark is running out of records to break. Sunday afternoon at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Clark surpassed Seimone Augustus for the all-time rookie scoring record, with 761 points and her career-best 35 in the nail-biting 110-109 win over the Dallas Wings. And in Clark fashion, teammates at times had to distract her from the referees. 

Clark got her sixth technical foul during Friday night’s loss to the Las Vegas Aces. Had Clark gotten her seventh, she’d be suspended for Thursday’s season-finale at Washington. 

“Well, I didn’t think they were going to give me a technical at any point tonight,” Clark said after the win. “I would’ve been really sad for people in Washington DC. I didn’t want to do that… but now it’s basically over. I don’t have to worry about that anymore. But I don’t want to be getting technicals at all. My mom doesn’t want that for me either. And I don’t want to pay more fines.”

Players serve one-game suspensions at seven technicals. But that resets in the playoffs. 

“I’m done with that,” Caitlin Clark added, capping off her 53-second bantering answer. 

Toward the end of the second quarter, the Fever playmaker steamed to the basket, didn’t convert the layup, and defender Natasha Howard landed on top of her baseline. Clark was called for the foul though, where it looked like her momentum dragged Howard down. Aliyah Boston came over and had to redirect Clark away from refs. She got subbed out, and smacked the scorer’s table. 

Midway through the fourth quarter, Clark — with back-to-back important 3-pointers coming in minutes — eluded to the basket on back-to-back plays and scored both. It put the Fever up 90-86. The Wings called timeout. And yet, she stood near midcourt and raised both arms up at the official. Eventually, teammate Katie Lou Samuelson jogged over and stood in front of Clark. 

“My teammates do a really good job of that,” Clark said. “They think I’m funny. They think it’s funny. And then Aliyah is the one who ends up with a technical. That’s the best part about it all. She’s the one babysitting me… but I think I did a better job. Still thought there was a couple moments there, where I could’ve been a little bit better.” 

Kelsey Mitchell and bench add in Fever home-finale win 

Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) reacts to a call from the referee on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, during the game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

Caitlin Clark nabbed the headline, but Kelsey Mitchell poured on 30 points in the win, shooting 6-for-12 beyond the arc and making the most shots on either side. The seven-year veteran, counting this season, has resided in Indiana her whole professional career. That began in 2018, when the Fever went 6-28. They just clinched an .500 record and the playoffs for the first time since 2016. 

That’s when Mitchell was in college at Ohio State, for reference. They’ve turned it around. 

It’s the first time since 2015 that the Fever have accumulated 20 wins. 

“It’s a big deal,” Mitchell said. “I’ve never accomplished something personally like that. So hats off to our group, hats off to the season so far. I say so far, because I look forward to hopefully a really good run for us in the playoffs. I’m excited about the 20 wins. I’m grateful. I know where I started and I know where I’m at now… we had people step up when their number was called.” 

“It’s going to be like that in the playoffs,” Mitchell added. 

Backup forward Damiris Dantas, who stretches the floor, signed with the Fever in the offseason and had probably her best contribution of the season Sunday. After Caitlin Clark hit her sixth 3-pointer to get to 32 points, and Mitchell got her sixth for 30 points, Dantas nailed back-to-back triples to put the Fever up 106-98 with 66 seconds to go. And to think, Indiana barely prevailed, 110-109. 

When Indiana’s three All-Stars can score 80 of the team’s 110 points, and the bench and other starters like NaLyssa Smith can add on 30 points, it makes this playoff squad threatening offensively in the first round. Defensively though, they gave up 109 points. Mastering offense and defense isn’t perfect yet, but Sunday was an important get-right win with the playoffs near. 

The Fever had lost three of their past four at home to the second and fourth-best teams. 

That didn’t leave optimism for the playoffs, which begin Sept. 22. But what Sunday did do is leave Fever fans happy — who’ve broken the all-time attendance record in 2024. Following  the win, players signed mini basketballs courtside and tossed them into the crowd. Based on how the playoffs operate, Sunday’s sellout crowd could be the final home game for the Fever. 

That is, unless they can harness all their road bumps this year and force Game 3 here. 

Who they play is to be determined.