Caitlin Clark Draws Biggest WNBA TV Viewership in 23 Years During Indiana Fever Debut Despite Broadcast Change

CAITLIN Clark’s WNBA debut drew jaw-dropping numbers on Tuesday night.

Indiana Fever star Clark, 22, made television ratings history despite a broadcast snag.

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Clark and the Fever lost 92-71 to the Connecticut Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena.

The Iowa Hawkeyes legend’s WNBA debut drew 2.13 million viewers.

However, the sold-out game was not aired on ESPN’s main channel.

The contest was broadcast on ESPN2.

The Fever-Sun game even eclipsed the Boston Bruins-Florida Panthers NHL playoff game in a similar window on ESPN, which drew 1.99 million viewers.

The WNBA game also competed with the NBA playoff game between the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks, which averaged 4.88 million viewers.

Clark’s debut contest is the largest viewership for a single WNBA game since the Los Angeles Sparks faced the Houston Comets on NBC in 2001.

That game attracted 2.44 million viewers.

Therefore, the Fever-Sun game drew the largest audience for a WNBA cable game in history.

Clark’s game for Iowa last college basketball season broke several viewership records.

Iowa’s Final Four game against UConn in April was the most-watched NCAA women’s basketball game ever, drawing 14.2 million viewers.

This matchup beat the Hawkeyes’ previous game, which was the Elite Eight matchup with LSU, which broke a record with 12.3 million viewers.

The 2024 WNBA Draft also received a 307% increase in views.

Clark was selected with the No. 1 pick by the Fever in that draft.

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During his debut, Clark scored 20 points on 5-of-15 shooting, adding three assists and two steals.

However, she committed 10 turnovers and had early trouble in the first quarter.

The 22-year-old and Fever will have many chances to break audience records.

Indiana will have 36 nationally televised games.

Fans can see the Fever play the New York Liberty in Indiana’s home opener on Thursday night.

The confrontation can be seen on Amazon Prime Video.