INDIANAPOLIS -- Only one thing could slow down Caitlin Clark on Tuesday night as the Indiana Fever faced elimination in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series against the Las Vegas Aces: a funny-feeling tummy.
The star guard (27 points, career-high 15 assists) became the first player in WNBA history with at least 25 points and 15 assists in a game (regular season or playoffs), helping the Fever stay alive with a 99-89 victory at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
But with Indiana up five points at halftime, Clark had to find a trash can during the break.
"I think I was just really tired, and then sometimes I drink too much water," she said with a smirk. "Not to be gross back, but like it's an incredible amount of throw-up. So sorry to anybody that was sitting in the vicinity of that trash can."
Clark was clearly on a mission from the opening tip. It took all of 15 seconds before she drained a 29-foot 3-pointer, and she had 14 points and 11 assists by halftime.
"We diagramed the first play in the locker room, and [coach Stephanie White] told everybody I was going to make it," Clark said. "So I was just trying not to let everybody down because we were all visualizing that I was going to make it. So, I needed to get the night started off right. ... Just staying aggressive."
Clark fouled out with 2:45 left in the fourth quarter, but by then, she had done her damage. As the Aces chipped away in the final quarter, she got a friendly bounce on a 3 to put the Fever up 87-77. Moments later, the No. 3 scorer in the league knocked down a 30-footer over three-time defensive player of the year A'ja Wilson, hollering toward the crowd as the lead stretched to 11.
But it wasn't all about scoring.
At one point, Clark threw an alley-oop to 5-foot-8 guard Kelsey Mitchell. She also had six rebounds. And she scored or assisted on 58 points -- tied for the most in a playoff game in WNBA history.
"I thought her energy [was great] from start to finish," White said. "I mean, a double-double in the first half, pretty incredible. The way that she moved the ball and attacked from multiple positions. You always expect her to be able to make shots and to facilitate. But I thought how she managed the game was really good. And her defensive energy I thought was terrific.
"It's what we need from her, night in and night out," White said. "And she was the catalyst for us here tonight, and I think she's going to just take it to another level when we go to Game 3," which is Thursday night in Las Vegas.
Whereas the Aces' big three -- Wilson, Chelsea Gray and Jackie Young -- dominated at home in Game 1, scoring 93 of Las Vegas' 102 points, it was the Fever trio of Clark, Mitchell and Aliyah Boston that ran wild Tuesday. Mitchell scored 26 points for her fourth postseason 25-point game, tied for the second most in franchise history. Boston finished with 22 points, five assists and four rebounds for her second career 20-point game in the playoffs. And the three combined to score or assist on 89 points -- the same amount the Aces scored in total.
It marked a complete turnaround from Game 1, when Mitchell and Clark combined to shoot 10-for-33.
"We were just poor as a group defensively," Aces coach Becky Hammon said. "I thought we were a step behind all night.
"Caitlin got a couple rhythm looks. We left our feet a couple times. She got us in the air, but then she got down in the paint and continued to kind of slice and dice us. And you have to stay solid. You have to play great one-on-one defense. Where the other day I thought we had a lot of great one-on-one moments. I can't recall where I'm thinking, 'Oh, that was a really great one-on-one defensive play.'"
While the Aces struggled to get stops, a Fever team that had defensive issues all season brought a level of assertiveness that was missing in Game 1. It picked up ball handlers earlier. It gave up only 26 points in the paint. Help defense seemed to be in the right spots. There were more double-teams.
The Aces actually led 26-18 after the first quarter, but White said her team turned up its intensity afterward as Raven Johnson provided a shot of energy off the bench.
Young did her best to shoot the Aces back into the game, putting up 31 points, five assists and four rebounds, but she needed more from her teammates. Wilson had 22 points and nine rebounds, but she never looked to be in rhythm and shot just 5-for-11 from the field. Gray was held to 10 points on 4-for-11 shooting and handed out seven assists. The elbow jumpers that fell in Game 1 bounced away in Game 2.
Hammon seemed frustrated by the physicality of the game, though the Aces shot 34 free throws compared with 24 for the Fever.
"There was a lot of grabbing, hand-checking," Hammon said. "I understand it's the playoffs, but it shouldn't turn into the NFL, either."