If you are asked to name a present-day player who, beyond stats, revived an entire league, the answer will be simple. Caitlin Clark. The reason why there is something poetic about the way a hometown responds to one of its own and that it’s what makes home special. At Iowa’s Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Sunday afternoon, it wasn’t just basketball fans who showed up for Caitlin Clark; it was her believers. Over 14,000 packed the building, ticket prices soared as high as $2,368 on the secondary market, and jerseys bearing the number 22 flooded every corner, making this the most in-demand event of Clark’s rising WNBA career. What they came to see was not a usual WNBA preseason game. It was a homecoming cloaked in legacy, nostalgia, and the hope of more greatness to come.
This was in intensity, atmosphere, and execution, not Clark’s college comeback in name only. Playing for the Indiana Fever against Brazil’s national team, Clark seemed at ease back on the already-mastered court. The audience was buzzing even before tipoff as decibels breached records! Though officially only the Fever’s second preseason game, the stakes seemed anything but light. After all, Clark’s first game action in Iowa since evolving the NCAA record books. The jumbotron even showed a highlight reel of her famous deep three against Michigan and the exact shot that made her the all-time leading scorer in NCAA basketball. And in the fourth quarter, history repeated itself.
From almost the same spot and several steps behind the arc, Clark fired away and nailed an incredible 3-pointer, igniting an eruption from the crowd that reached a reported decibel of 117. Among those watching was former NBA champion Matt Barnes, who took to Instagram shortly after. Posting a video of the shot as a story, Barnes captioned it with four simple words: “It’s about that time…!!” For Barnes and many others, the message was clear that Clark’s WNBA stardom isn’t on the way; it’s here, and the world is not ready.
In the Fever’s commanding 109–44 victory, Clark finished the night with a game-high 16 points. But maybe even more amazing than the numbers was the stage she got again. Brazil’s head coach, Leo Figueiro, paid praise mid-game, saying to her, “You’ve changed the history of basketball,” a time Clark reacted to with humble appreciation. “I appreciate it. Thanks for coming here and playing us,” she responded. Even her opponents were in awe of her.
Caitlin Clark’s Referee Drama Stealing Spotlight
After becoming the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer during four seasons with the Iowa Hawkeyes, Caitlin Clark has now elevated women’s basketball since joining the WNBA. Drafted first overall by the Indiana Fever in 2024, Clark assisted in steering the team to its first postseason trip in eight years. Averaging 19.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 8.4 assists per game, her first season earned her the WNBA Rookie of the Year title and a place on the All-WNBA First Team.
Sunday’s comeback to Carver-Hawkeye Arena was meant to be all about nostalgia and joy, but in classic Caitlin Clark style, it also included a hint of controversy. The 23-year-old couldn’t help but make a sharp comment aimed at league authorities at her pregame press conference: “Swallow their whistle,” claimed USA Today’s Meghan L. Hall. He further wrote on his X handle, “Wouldn’t be Caitlin Clark if she didn’t mention the refs…just briefly mentioned them needing to ‘swallow their whistle’…I am cracking up. Said it stone-faced.” The remark elicited laughter but also highlighted a running theme in her career: her bitter relationship with officials.
Syndication: The Indianapolis Star Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark poses for a photo Wednesday, April 30, 2025, during the Indiana Fever media day at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Indianapolis , EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xGracexSmith/IndyStarx USATSI_26053066
During the game itself, when her father, Brent Clark, expressed his own displeasure on national television, that narrative strengthened. “There’s a lot of room for improvement, particularly in the officiating,” he told ESPN’s Holly Rowe. “If you make the game more fluid, people are going to like the product even more.” Brent even saw a difference in the way Sunday’s game was officiated, implying that authorities were at last getting it right at least for one afternoon in a preseason game.
While the officials’ critiques grabbed headlines. Clark’s performance was top-notch. She will now be seen next in action in preseason when her new test comes Saturday against Brittney Griner and the Atlanta Dream, before opening the regular season against the Chicago Sky on May 17.
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