Caitlin Clark lands dagger for first career WNBA win after 0-5 start

Caitlin Clark went from looking like a work in progress to, well, the Caitlin Clark everyone was expecting on Friday. The result: her first career WNBA win.

The No. 1 overall pick's Indiana Fever defeated the Los Angeles Sparks 78-71 on Friday to break a season-opening five-game losing streak. Clark, who started slow, came up big in crunch time, first with a deep 3-pointer to give her team a six-point lead with two-and-a-half minutes, then a dagger to all but put L.A. away with 40 seconds left.

If you're judging Clark by the numbers she put up at Iowa, she didn't have a very good game overall. She had an inefficient 11 points on 4-of-14 shooting (2-of-9 from deep, missing her first seven), but also contributed a team-high 10 rebounds, eight assists and four steals.

Of course, if you're judging her as a rookie who was immediately handled primary ballhandling duties of a team that went 13-27 last year less than two months after playing a full college season, you could call that an encouraging step for a player who still remains a league-altering prospect.

The Fever's previous No. 1 pick, Aaliyah Boston, had led the team with 17 points plus six rebounds, two assists and two steals, while veteran Kelsey Mitchell had 13 fourth-quarter points to power the Fever's comeback.