House Of Horrors? Caitlin Clark Assesses Abysmal WNBA Playoff Debut

UNCASVILLE, Conn. -- The black eye Caitlin Clark sported in her postgame press conference Sunday pretty much summed up her WNBA playoff debut against the Connecticut Sun.

It was a rough evening for Clark, who took an inadvertent shot to the face from Sun guard DiJonai Carrington less than 90 seconds into the game, as she faltered on the playoff stage for the first time.

Clark was wildly inefficient in the Indiana Fever's 93-69 Game 1 loss to the Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena. She shot just 4-for-17 from the field and was an even worse 2-for-13 from 3-point range to finish with 11 points. She also chipped in eight assists, four rebounds and three steals.

But it wasn't anywhere close to being enough for the unanimous WNBA Rookie of the Year to spark the No. 6 Fever to an upset of the third-seeded Sun.

"I felt like I got good shots. They just didn't go down. Obviously, a tough time for that to happen," Clark said. "I got some really good looks. I had three pretty wide-open threes in the first half that you usually make. I feel like I battled and tried my best. Took care of the ball better than I usually do, which is a positive."

Connecticut's physical and pressure defense played a role in Clark's performance, but she also contributed to her own demise in the contest. Clark missed her first eight 3-pointers of the game.

The struggles for Clark inside Mohegan Sun Arena aren't new. She made her WNBA debut at the venue and committed a league-record 10 turnovers for a player in their first game. Clark returned for a road matchup against the Sun a month later and didn't fare much better. She now is averaging 13.7 points on 30% shooting from the floor and 27.6% shooting from 3-point range to go along with 13 assists and 15 turnovers in three games at the arena this season.

While Clark rejected the notion that the venue is a house of horrors for her, she'll have to prove it on the court.

"Like I said, we can win," Clark said. "It's not anything about the building. It's not about the gym. It's not about the hoops. I have all the confidence in the world in this team and everybody in our locker room does. And I know we'll be a lot better on Wednesday."