Caitlin Clark and the Fever

Some games feel close.

This was not one of them.

The Indiana Fever walked into Portland and left with a 112-98 win. It was fast. It was loud. And once Caitlin Clark got hot, the Fire had no way to put her out.

Clark did what Clark does.

She scored 26 points. She grabbed 10 boards. She gave out 10 dimes. Yep. Yet one more triple-double. At this point, it feels like she is just checking off boxes on a list.

But here is the fun part.

Portland came in with a plan. Slow Clark down. Make her work. Keep the ball out of her hands.

Good luck with that.

She still found ways to score. She still found her team. She still ran the game like she had the map and no one else did.

Then there was Kelsey Mitchell.

She put up 26 points too. When Clark drew the eyes of the whole gym, Mitchell made the Fire pay. Pick your trap. Pick your poison. It did not seem to make much of a diff.

To be fair, the Fire did not quit.

Bridget Carleton lit it up from deep. She hit shot after shot and gave the home fans hope. For a bit, the lead got down to seven.

Then the Fever said, "That was fun."

They went right back to work.

Big plays. Fast runs. More stops. Game done.

One thing is now hard to miss.

This team is not just "the Caitlin Clark show" now.

Clark can take over. Mitchell can take over. Aliyah Boston does the dirty work. Sophie Cunningham brings grit off the bench. Each game, some one new steps up. That is bad news for the rest of the league.

And yes, Clark keeps making more team marks.

She and Mitchell keep adding to the list of Fever records. At this rate, the record book may need more pages.

The scary part?

This team still looks like it has one more gear.

If that is true, the rest of the WNBA may want to brace for what comes next.

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