UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Caitlin Clark did all she could to help the Indiana Fever stave off elimination. It just wasn’t enough.

The sensational rookie scored 25 points and had nine assists in Indiana’s 87-81 loss to Connecticut in Game 2. A much better night than her playoff debut when she had just 11 points on 4 of 17 shooting.

Clark had a record-breaking season on and off the court. She broke the single-season assist record as well as setting the league’s individual game mark with 19. Clark also broke the rookie record for points in a season, although she did do it in 40 games.

Off the court, Clark and her fellow rookies have been a ratings and attendance boon for the WNBA. Despite the blowout loss in Game 1, fans tuned in as the game averaged 1.8 million viewers according to ESPN, making it the WNBA’s most watched playoff game since the 2000 Finals. It was the most watched playoff game on ESPN ever despite going up against the NFL.

Six different league television partners set viewership records this year for its highest viewed WNBA game. All of those games included the Fever.

Thanks to Clark, Indiana led the league in attendance both at home and on the road. The Fever averaged 17,036 at home and over 15,000 on the road. Four teams moved home games to bigger arenas when Indiana came to town to accommodate more fans.

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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

Doug Feinberg, The Associated Press