The Mystics won, but so did the Dream, so Atlanta grabbed the no. 8 seed.
The Washington Mystics defeated the Indiana Fever in Capital One Arena tonight, 92-91. Though they did everything they could to make the playoffs, the Mystics were mathematically eliminated tonight when the Atlanta Dream beat the New York Liberty.
Caitlin Clark’s history-redefining rookie season has been covered ad nauseam; I don’t need to prove to you that she’s great. She’s so great that her games get moved to arenas five times the size of their original venues to accommodate her blinding stardom. She’s so great that I tore ligaments in my elbow and came straight from the emergency room to Capital One Arena because I was not going to let myself miss a chance to see her play live (I wish I was kidding about that). Clark owns every relevant rookie scoring and assist record, as well as the WNBA single-season (329) and single-game (19) assist records.
Clark’s number 22 jersey was ubiquitous in Capital One Arena, whether it was the Indiana Fever or Iowa Hawkeyes or even a plan white t-shirt with a giant “CLARK 22” sharpied in. Good luck to the Connecticut Sun, whose arena will no doubt be flooded with the same merchandise during their first-round series against Indiana.
Here are some of my notes from tonight’s game:
- The Mystics stumbled to an 18-point deficit just minutes into the first quarter. For the next quarter and a half they played the best ball they’ve played all season, draining three after three en route to a lead at the start of the second half.
- With seeding locked up, Caitlin Clark headed to the bench halfway through the third quarter to wrap up her surefire Rookie of the Year campaign. Clark scored 8 points and dished out 8 assists tonight on just five shots.
- The Mystics led the entire second half and survived a scare at the final buzzer — the Fever nearly stole the game on a buzzer beater.
- I saw exactly one Indiana Fever jersey that did not feature Caitlin Clark’s name. It was a Kelsey Mitchell Stranger Things-themed jersey. Now that’s a real fan.
- When the PA system played “Hot to Go” by Chappell Roan during a timeout, Stefanie Dolson led the crowd in the song’s corresponding dance. That’s not really a note about the game but I had a good laugh about it.
After starting the season 0-12, it is a miracle the Mystics were even alive for the playoffs on the final day of the season. Now, with a lottery pick in the 2025 draft, Washington has a chance at the number one pick and unanimous top prospect Paige Bueckers.