SI:AM | Caitlin Clark Saves Fever’s Season With Historic Game

Good morning, I’m Andy Nesbitt, filling in for Dan Gartland, and I can’t wait to watch four more MLB playoff games today.

In today’s SI:AM:

☀️ Sunny forecast in Miami

🗽 Schlittler’s masterpiece

☘️ Irish’s Roman opener

The WNBA playoffs didn’t disappoint Tuesday night

While Tuesday night’s two MLB playoff games were snoozers (the Yankees crushed the Red Sox 9–0 and the Padres blanked the Cubs 8–0), the two elimination games in the WNBA playoffs didn’t disappoint.

In the opener, Caitlin Clark and the Fever kept their season alive with a 99–89 win at home over the Aces. The series now shifts back to Las Vegas for a decisive Game 3 on Thursday at 9 p.m. ET.

Clark had a huge night, finishing with 27 points, 15 assists and seven rebounds. She became the first player in WNBA history to score over 25 points and have 15 assists in a game.

Clark did have one gross moment, though, as she got a little sick at halftime.

"I think I was just really tired, and then sometimes I drink too much water," she said. "Not to be gross, but like it's an incredible amount of throw-up. So sorry to anybody that was sitting in the vicinity of that trash can."

She also got called out by Candace Parker, who was calling the game for Prime Video, for not getting back on defense early in the game after she thought she had been fouled.

There was a heated moment at the end of the game when Aces star A’Ja Wilson had some words with a Fever fan along the baseline. The four-time WNBA MVP had to be held back by her teammates, got called for a technical and later explained what led to the exchange.

“I don’t know if you guys know me, but I don’t really get into the bulls---. I don’t. I try to play my game, keep it pushing,” Wilson said. “But if I’m just walking—‘cause I just got the foul, I’m chilling—and if I see a man come at me, taking steps at me and pointing at me, I don’t give a damn what you said, I don’t give a damn how you said it, the tone, that is unacceptable. You don’t step towards me. You never should—and point at me. I’m not for that s---. At all. Excuse my French and God bless me.”

In the second game of the night, the Lynx suffered a historic loss to the Liberty as they became the WNBA’s first No. 1 seed to lose a first-round series.

"We became a great regular-season team this year," Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve said, "and we ran into the wrong team."

Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones led the Liberty with 21 points apiece. The Liberty will face the winner of the Atlanta-Washington series, which the Dream lead 1-0.

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The top five…

…things I saw last night.

5. The Panthers scored with just four seconds left in overtime to beat the defending champion Hurricanes, 1–0.

4. Bruins new right winger JJ Peterka scored one of the slickest goals in Boston’s 3–0 win over the Rangers.

3. Patrick Kane had a sick goal in his first game back with the Blackhawks.

2. Fernando Tatis Jr. got the crowd in San Diego fired up early with a home run on the first pitch of the night by Cubs starter Matthew Boyd.

1. Ben Rice’s huge grand slam in the Bronx put an exclamation point on the Yankees’ Game 1 win.

📺 What we’re watching today …

MLB
Phillies at Braves, 2 p.m. ET, NBC
Cristopher Sánchez, Philadelphia’s 18-game winner, looks to stave off elimination against Atlanta.

White Sox at Astros, 5 p.m. ET, Peacock
Chicago will aim to earn its first divisional series berth since 2021 with a win.

Red Sox at Yankees, 8 p.m. ET, NBC
Boston’s playoff hopes rest on the arm of 36-year-old Sonny Gray, who won 18 games this season.

Cubs at Padres, 10 p.m. ET, Peacock
Chicago, MLB’s leader in runs scored, will need to get its bats going out to avoid elimination.

WNBA

Dream at Mystics, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN
Atlanta will attempt to close out the series and make the semifinals for the first time since 2018.

Valkyries at Wings, 9 p.m. ET, ESPN

Paige Bueckers, who had 21 points in Game 1, will need some help from her Dallas teammates if they want to force a Game 3 in San Francisco.

NHL

Penguins at Flyers, 7:30 p.m. ET, TNT

Two intrastate rivals will kick off their seasons in a Metropolitan Division matchup.

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