INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Caitlin Clark seemed “bouncy” to Indiana coach Stephanie White before the Fever faced the Seattle Storm on Friday night.The sharpshooting star not too far removed from a back injury bounced right into the record books — her own, her team’s and the WNBA’s.Clark had the first 40-point game of her three-year career while helping rally the Fever to a 110-107 victory, scoring 45 points with 10 assists to become the first player with 40 or more points and 10 or more assists in a game in WNBA history.Oh, and the scoring total was a franchise record.“I feel like you just have to believe you’re going to have those type of nights,” said Clark, who was 11 of 18 from the field, including 6 of 10 from 3-point range, and had two more career highs by going 17 of 19 on free throws. “And you have to visualize having those type of nights. I feel like that’s what I did.”It was Clark’s fourth game since returning from a two-week absence due to a back injury that sidelined her after a game against Phoenix in which she took a hit to the throat from Alyssa Thomas. The incident eventually led to a one-game suspension for Thomas.
Because of a long break between games, Clark only missed two. She played a season-low 16 minutes in a 106-92 loss to the Los Angeles Sparks in her first game back.
