Caitlin Clark shines in ‘amazing’ Boston, leads Fever to victory

BOSTON AP Caitlin Clark struggled in her first-ever visit to Boston a performance that didn t seem to spoil the mood of the fans who filled TD Garden on Tuesday night for a rare WNBA championship in the home of the Celtics and Bruins Instead of Lucky the Leprechaun and the Boston Celtics iconic parquet the Garden floor featured the logos of the WNBA and Connecticut Suns the league s only New England squad as they hosted a challenge in Boston for the second year in a row Both have been sellouts of the biggest crowds to see a basketball battle in the building s history And this year it was the visiting Indiana Fever and their breakout star that bulk of them were there to see It s a great opportunity for people in the city or fans around the area to come and encouragement a crew here Clark stated before the competition You don t take these opportunities for granted It s dependably fun to go to a new arena in a new place and enjoy it Fans wearing Clark s No crowded toward the court before the match trying to get her autograph waving her jersey or homemade signs begging for a selfie Among those in attendance were Celtics Jaylen Brown and Georges Niang Bruins Jeremy Swayman and Mason Lohrei Red Sox pitcher Lucas Giolito and Massachusetts Gov Maura Healey Clark scored points on for shooting adding seven assists and eight rebounds for the Fever who pulled away in the fourth quarter to win - She committed one of her five turnovers on the Fever s first possession and another when she stepped on the sideline at the end of the third quarter guarded too closely to launch one of her logo -pointers She went for from beyond the arc and did not connect on a until she gave the Fever an - lead with three minutes left their biggest lead of the tournament Natasha Howard scored points with rebounds for Indiana Tina Charles had points and rebounds for the Sun who beat the Los Angeles Sparks in Boston in front of a sold-out crowd last year but have stumbled to a - record this season the worst in the league Clark revealed before the championship that she took time to appreciate the opportunity to play in a building where so much basketball lore had been written The Iowa native explained she grew up respecting the Celtics as an organization even though she now counts herself an Indiana Pacers fan The Celtics are one of the premier organizations of the NBA she reported And having won a championship two years ago now it s kind of cool to just be in this building and surround yourself with the greatness that has played in this arena The Celtics won it all in shooting an NBA record number of -pointers something Clark whose long-distance shooting made her a breakout star for the Hawkeyes and in her first two years in the WNBA could appreciate I m a Pacers fan I just want to make that clear But as I ve been growing up they ve been a fun crew to root for she commented They re really fun to watch They shoot a lot of s which maybe people make an argument against But for myself I think that s fun I enjoy that I think it s a great style of basketball Clark commented she had never been to Boston and would have liked to take in a Red Sox tournament at Fenway Park but baseball is off for the All-Star break She searched on TikTok for things to do in Boston but it will have to wait until next time It seems like an amazing city she revealed I would love to come back here and explore a little bit more in the history of it and all the amazing things that you can do That could be a while because the city that is home to an unprecedented NBA championships doesn t have a company in the WNBA the Sun are the league s sole representative in New England the birthplace of basketball Fever All-Star Aliyah Boston a three-time Massachusetts Competitor of the Year while at Worcester Academy before winning an NCAA championship at South Carolina noted she maintained her namesake town could patronage a WNBA association When you look at the atmosphere for the Celtics when you look at the atmosphere for the two TD Garden games that now we ve had it s been sold out It s been potency she stated They obviously have been great and I think that s going to be the same all the time