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On a night where Caitlin Clark scored a career-high 45 points, it was what she did elsewhere to impact the game that stood out.
In a tied game at 102 points apiece with less than a minute left in the fourth quarter, Clark chased down Seattles star rookie Flaujae Johnson to stop a potential go-ahead basket for the Storm.
It was a bang-bang play and Clark may have gotten away with some contact, self-admittedly.
The effort, however, was the culmination of a standout night in every aspect of the game.
On the other end of the floor, she nailed a step-back three-pointer to score her 41st point of the night and give the Fever the lead which they never gave back.
The shot sealed the first 40-point, 10-assist game in WNBA history.
She wasnt done there as she got to the free-throw line a couple more times to end the game in a 110107 Fever win as she finished with 45 points, 10 assists, four steals and two blocks.
She shot 11-for-18 from the field, 6-for-10 from three-point range and 17-for-19 from the foul line.
Her 10 assists came with just four turnovers, too.
I feel like some nights you know you have it even before the ball tips, Clark said postgame, and I felt like it was going to be one of those for me.
Its not the best scoring performance in WNBA historyAja Wilson, Marina Mabrey and Liz Cambage still share that honorbut the sheer volume of points Clark created while also making a significant impact defensively makes the her night the most complete performance the league has ever seen.
Where Caitlin Clarks 45-point, 10-assist game stacks up in WNBA history Clark recorded the first 40-point, 10-assist and 45-point, 10-assist game in WNBA history.
She smashed her previous career-high by 10 points and fell nine points shy of owning the best scoring game ever.
With six threes on the night, she became the fastest player to reach 200 threes.
Kelsey Mitchell added 30 more points for the Fever, which made her and Clarks 75 combined points the most by a duo in franchise history.
Clark did all of that in just 29 minutes of play.
She was on a minutes restriction after she returned from a back injury on July 8 and struggled to get it going from the field in the three previous games since her return.
Safe to say the monkey is off her back.
Her 45 points ties the ninth-most in a game in WNBA history, but no player who had a better scoring game recorded as many assists.
Wilson, Mabrey and Cambage hold the record with 53 points.
Wilson didnt have an assist in her 53-point game, while Mabrey and Cambage had two dimes apiece in their big nights.
Cambage did have a double-double with 10 rebounds while adding five blocks.
Wilson grabbed seven rebounds and swatted four shots in her big game.
The best comparison to Clarks signature performance comes from the legendary Diana Taurasi.
She had 47 points, nine assists and six rebounds with two stocks (steals plus blocks) back in 2006.
While Clark wasnt as active on the glass, the combination of offensive generation with game-changing defensive plays puts her performance right up there as one of, if not the greatest all-around games the WNBA has ever seen.
That was a heck of a defensive play, Fever coach Stephanie White said of Clarks strip on Johnson.
Not just to get a hand on it and strip it, but then to maintain our possession.
It was big.
..
I think her confidence is growing on that end of the floor.
She knows that shes plenty capable, and shes able to make momentum-changing plays, and that was another one of them.
The Fever have struggled defensively this season, their defensive rating of 107.3 is ninth in the league.
Indianas explosive offense helps offset that at times, but on lot of nights, the team simply gave up too many points to win games.
The defense has turned a corner recently; Indiana has allowed 100 or more points in just two of its past seven games.
All-Star center Aliyah Boston was out for Fridays win over the Storm due to a lower leg injury, which made the defensive end of the floor all the more critical.
Makayla Timpson came up big in a spot start against Seattles star frontcourt duo in Dominique Malonga and Awa Fam.
If Clark didnt step up defensively herself, though, the game likely wouldve ended differently.
Indiana still allowed 107 points, but Clarks big defensive play created a five-point swing that turned into a game-winning sequence for the Fever.
Forty-five points and 10 assists sounds a lot better in a win.
And it was the little things that Clark did that made the Fever emerge victorious in what will be remembered as one of the most complete performances the WNBA has ever seen.
More WNBA from Sports Illustrated Blake Silverman is a writer at Sports Illustrated, primarily covering the NBA and WNBA.
Before joining SI in November 2024 as a breaking/trending news writer, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation and A10Talk.
Hes an alum of both Michigan State and St.
Bonaventure University, receiving a masters degree from the Bonnies sports journalism program.
Outside of work, hes a husband, father, yogi and fairly mediocre tennis player whos open to any tips on how to play defense in EA Sports College Football.