Caitlin Clark, a newcomer to the Indiana Fever, marked her entry into the professional basketball scene in the midst of her team’s narrow 79-76 defeat against the Dallas Wings on Friday evening. This preseason showdown unfolded before a packed audience at UT Arlington’s College Park Center.

During the game, she contributed 21 points, along with three rebounds and two assists. Following the match, her ex-teammates from lowa Hawkeyes, Jada Gyamfi and Sydney Affolter, cheered her on through an Instagram post, adding to the excitement surrounding her debut.

“We still have a spot for you here,” Jada Gyamfi wrote. “Miss you stinker.”

“We be missing you,” Affolter wrote

Caitlin Clark has harsh introduction to pro basketball

The record-breaking Caitlin Clark did what she has always done and shone brightest on the biggest stage during her pro debut, receiving a standing ovation from the UT Arlington College Park Center crowd.

She gave the fans what they came to see, scoring 16 points in a relentless first-half display, but she was defended hard by the Dallas Wings.

During her postgame news conference, Fever coach Christie Sides revealed that Clark was struggling with exhaustion after the first quarter with how furiously she was being guarded and asked for a substitution.

“I think she (Clark) got to the point where she was just completely gassed and she asked for a sub,” Sides said. “That was awesome for her to do; a lot of players will try to play through that. When she looked over at me, I was going to have to grab her and help her get to the sideline. Right there at the end of the first”

“We have to do better. We can’t let her get to that point. She just won’t be able to last the way people are guarding her,”

Clark still showed her penchant for scoring from beyond the arc, which was one of her specialties in college basketball. She went 5 for 13 from beyond the arc to introduce the league to her abilities.

Sides praised this aspect of Clark’s gameplay during the preseason fixture.

“I thought Caitlin came out,” Sides said. “I am glad she got some shots up. She was able to hit some big shots. They’re still learning each other. She doesn’t have to work as hard for it anymore.”

Caitlin Clark demonstrated her full range of abilities during her Indiana Fever debut, but she was also introduced to how hard professional basketball can be given her exhaustion from the relentless guarding she had to endure.