Editors’ Note: All photo credits go to the author, Lily Saal, unless otherwise specified.
17, 735 fans, a sold-out crowd, gathered at the Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn on Saturday, May 18, to watch a mammoth of a women’s basketball game: the New York Liberty, fresh off a WBNA finals-reaching season, and the Indiana Fever, who’s newest team member’s name causes temperatures to rise nationwide – Caitlin Clark.
According to the Associated Press, the game generated over $2 million in ticket revenue, a WNBA record. From the moment my family and I exited the 2/3 train station, I understood why: I had never seen so many fans at a women’s sporting event. In 2019, the last time I attended a NY Liberty game, the stadium closed the top row of seats, many sections sparsely held fans and wildest of all, I managed to secure a courtside seat. Since, the NY Liberty underwent a complete rebuild going from league bottom to championship contender, but nothing and no one attracted more fans to Barclay’s than Caitlin Clark.
Fans donned plenty of turquoise blue Liberty merch, using their motto, “Light it up,” (the team’s symbol is a torch, for the Statue of Liberty), but a Caitlin Clark fan appeared for each Liberty fan. Attendees wore Clark’s jerseys, from Iowa (her alma mater) and Indiana. One fan wore the iconic Nike shirt, “If you break it, you own it,” a reference to Clark breaking the all-time college basketball scoring record.
The game was no contest: the NY Liberty showed their strength early, leading by 9 at the end of the first quarter, and continued to pull away. Led by team star Breanna Stewart, who scored 24, the Liberty’s entire starting lineup scored double-digit points. Although the crowd roared for a few impossible three-pointers, Indiana’s Clark looked helpless and exhausted; it was clear why the Indiana Fever received her first-overall in the Draft – they’re struggling. After a particularly incredible three-pointer, Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu summed up the game: a shrug of the shoulders – complete ease.
Even though the game lacked flair, the attendees certainly didn’t. Billie Jean King, sitting courtside in her iconic glasses, received a standing ovation from the crowd. Similarly, Dawn Staley, coach of the University of South Carolina women’s basketball team, the 2024 National Champions, gave the crowd an appreciative wave and smile. Other celebrities included: Soccer star Megan Rapinoe and WBNA all-star Sue Bird, renowned golfer Michelle Wie West (who wore an “everyone watches women’s sports” shirt) and Ted Lasso star Jason Sudeikis.
When my family and I first began our trudge up to our seats (I had to wipe the blood from my nose multiple times), I was almost brought to tears. Thousands of people, little girls and grown men alike, cheered, danced and roared for the women on the court. As a female athlete, it meant the world to see. Inspired, I began to think: soon, women’s field hockey (my sport) will fill stadiums! Maybe not, but attending an electric WBNA game, featuring Caitlin Clark, gave me, and thousands of other little girls cheering alongside me, hope to dream.
