Caitlin Clark pens emotional note about return to Iowa after dusting Brazil

Reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark made her return to Carver-Hawkeye Arena — the very court where she became a college basketball icon with the Iowa Hawkeyes — as the Indiana Fever faced the Brazil National Team in their second preseason contest.

And it was a triumphant homecoming, as Clark lit up the Brazilians in a commanding 108-44 victory, tallying 16 points, six rebounds, five assists and four 3-pointers, finishing with a game-best plus-42 rating in just under 19 minutes on the floor.

After the final buzzer, Clark expressed her gratitude for Iowa and the crowd that showed up in support. She posted on X (formerly Twitter):

“What a day in Iowa City. Can’t say thank you enough to everyone who made it special for myself, but also my teammates… FEV SHOWWW❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥.”

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Clark also had a signature moment in the matchup, draining a pull-up three from the edge of her “22” logo, putting the Fever up by 58 points before the end of the third quarter.

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It was a rout for the Fever, who shot an efficient 50.0% overall and knocked down 15 of their 33 attempts from deep. Kelsey Mitchell led the team with 17 points, while Aliyah Boston and Natasha Howard chipped in 11 and 10, respectively.

Caitlin Clark reflects on Iowa return

Returning to the arena where her college stardom began stirred deep emotion, Caitlin Clark postgame.

"It's hard to put into words how much it means to me," she said (per Sara Jane Gamelli). "I'm very thankful to be able to come back to a place that continues to support me. It was a little weird going into the locker room."

Seeing several young fans in the stands made the moment even more special, Clark added.

"Seeing the amount of people and young girls and young boys that stand there and scream for me to sign their stuff — I don't take that for granted,” she said. “I'm glad I can be a role model for them. They have a great impact on me too. There's a lot more bigger things in life than basketball."

Caitlin Clark played every single game during her four years at Iowa, becoming the all-time NCAA Division I scoring leader. She started all 139 games, averaging 34.8 minutes, 28.4 points, 8.2 assists and 7.1 rebounds per game.

About the author

John Ezekiel Hirro is an experienced NBA and WNBA journalist at Sportskeeda, with over five years in the field as a news correspondent, sports writer, and Editor-in-Chief. His sports writing career began in high school, where he garnered numerous accolades, including being named the national sports writing champion in 2016.

He earned his journalism degree from the University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines in 2024 and served as the Editor-in-Chief of The Varsitarian, the university's official student publication, for four years—the longest in history.

A passionate basketball enthusiast, he became a fan of the OKC Thunder during the Russ-KD-Harden era. Russell Westbrook, his all-time favorite athlete, impressed him by stepping up as MVP after Kevin Durant's departure. His current favorite players include Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, who he believes are the future of the OKC franchise.

He excels in game analysis and rapid news story turnaround, drawing inspiration from the journalistic styles of Woj and Shams. He emphasizes thorough research to ensure accuracy in his articles. One of his most memorable moments is Russell Westbrook breaking Oscar Robertson's record with his 42nd triple-double and securing a 106-105 victory over the Denver Nuggets with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer. Outside of writing, he enjoys listening to music and creating Spotify playlists.

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Edited by John Ezekiel Hirro