Caitlin Clark drops an astounding 30 points in close 85-83 victory over the Washington Mystics

Caitlin Clark, as she usually is when she takes the field, was the story of the evening – and with no on-field brawls or extracurricular activities, the Iowa native let it fly all evening.

The No. 1 overall pick in this year’s WNBA draft fell by 30 points in an 85-83 win over the Washington Mystics on Friday night in Commissioner’s Cup action.

Clark also had eight rebounds and six assists, along with eight costly turnovers — double that of the closest player — that kept the game close.

She closed out the game late – hitting three of four free throws in the final eleven seconds to keep the Mystics at bay and capped off a night in which she went 8-15 from the field and 7-13 from across the court. bow.

Those seven triples tied a rookie record held concurrently with Crystal Robinson.

Clark was especially deadly from deep, knocking down seven threes and tying a rookie record

Stefanie Dolson led the way for the Mystics with 19 points and six rebounds, while Washington saw five players reach double-digit points.

Ariel Atkins scored 16 points, Karlie Samuelson had 11, Aaliyah Edwards contributed 10 points and 12 rebounds and Myisha Hines-Allen also scored 10 points for Washington.

The Mystics again played without Brittney Sykes (ankle) and Shikira Austin (hip).

The match was a Commissioner’s Cup affair. Indiana is 2-1 and Washington 0-3 in such games.

Clark was fouled with 11.9 seconds left and hit both free throw attempts to give the Fever an 84-80 lead. Samuelson answered with a trey to bring Washington within one with 7.5 seconds left.

Clark split two free throws with 5.4 seconds left, extending Indiana’s lead to two. Atkins couldn’t get her hands on a three-point shot before time expired, and it still bounced off the rim.

Indiana shot 45.2 percent from the field, including 16 of 35 from three-point range.

The Mystics connected on 43.1 percent of their attempts and shot 13 of 34 from behind the arc.

Caitlin Clark drives to the basket during Friday’s game against the Washington Mystics

She put the game away late, hitting three of four free throws to keep Washington at bay

Indiana led 28-19 after the first quarter and Clark opened the second period with a 3-pointer to cap a 13-0 burst and give the Fever a 12-point lead.

But Erica Wheeler’s basket with 7:27 left in the half — giving Indiana a 38-27 lead — was the Fever’s final hoop before the break.

Atkins scored the first seven points of a 10-0 run that saw the Mystics move within one point. Washington caught Indiana at the 40 on a Samuelson three-pointer with 37.3 seconds left in the half.

Clark made two free throws with 23.7 seconds left as the Fever led 42-40 at halftime.

Clark drained three 3-pointers in the final 3:55 of the third quarter as Indiana took a 66-64 lead into the final stanza.