Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers finally had their first WNBA meeting, and the duo’s star power delivered strong viewership despite a lopsided game.
Sunday’s game between the Indiana Fever and Dallas Wings drew 2.1 million viewers on ABC, the network’s fourth-most-watched WNBA game ever, including the playoffs.
It’s also the fourth-most-watched WNBA regular-season game this year. The three games ahead of it were the Fever vs Chicago Sky on opening weekend (2.7 million, ABC), New York Liberty vs. Fever on May 24 (2.22 million, CBS), and another Liberty vs. Fever game on June 14, which was when Clark returned from her first injury (2.2 million, ABC).
ESPN announced its WNBA coverage is up 7% this year. The network was lucky that none of the Fever’s games that Clark had missed with an injury were broadcast on ABC or ESPN. The Indiana star didn’t play in 10 of the Fever’s 21 games due to injury.
Bueckers (21 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists) and Clark (14 points, 13 assists, 5 steals) shined during the game, but the Fever led by double digits for most of it after pulling away in the second quarter. Indiana led by as many as 29 points.
The two teams met for the first time on June 27 in Dallas—a game that was moved to the American Airlines Center, home of the NBA’s Mavericks—but Clark was out with a groin injury. Even without Clark, the contest still drew 1.14 million viewers on Ion, the network’s second-most-watched game of the year so far. (Because of Ion’s unique structure, the ratings include the local viewership from a Minnesota Lynx vs. Atlanta Dream game on the same night.)
Numbers for Ion’s broadcast of the Fever vs. Dream on Friday, Clark’s first contest back from a five-game absence, drew 1.5 million viewers, the network’s season-high.
Dallas and Indiana will meet two more times this season, one game in each market. The Wings announced last week that they moved the two teams’ second meeting in Dallas to the American Airlines Center. The Wings play in College Park Center, which fits about 7,000 fans, compared to more than 20,000 at the Mavericks’ home.
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