Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever are looking to climb the WNBA mountaintop, but they will have to go through teams who have already reached the apex to make it there themselves.
The New York Liberty are coming off a championship season and looking to add to their ring collection. The early returns on this season show that Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu and Co. are very capable of going back-to-back.
The two teams face off Saturday in an early-season litmus test for two talented squads that would be disappointed if they don’t win the final game of the season. Read on for more information on the matchup and how to watch it live.
New York Liberty vs. Indiana Fever team news, preview
As you might expect, this is a true matchup of elite teams. The Liberty’s plus-23.8 net rating is easily the best in the league per Basketball-Reference, and the Fever rank second at plus-15.7. It’s early – the Liberty have only played two games, the Fever three – but so far, the results match up to the name value on these rosters.
Clark has obviously made her presence felt as the league’s assist leader and the Fever’s leading scorer, but Indiana is not a one-woman show. Kelsey Mitchell, Natasha Howard and Aliyah Boston give the Fever four total players averaging at least 15.7 points per game, including Clark.
For the Liberty, Stewart has played her usual brand of efficient and productive ball, but the true star through two games has been new addition Natasha Cloud. Cloud, a 33-year-old guard who has made her name as a three-time All-Defensive selection and a former assist leader, has parlayed a blistering 55.6% 3-point percentage into a 20-point-per-game average.
Despite the offensive firepower, the true strength-on-strength matchup here comes on defense. The Fever and Liberty rank second and third in the WNBA, respectively, in defensive rating through games played Thursday. Boston leads the league in blocks while Stewart, Cloud and Jonquel Jones give the Liberty three players who made an All-Defensive team last season.
How to watch New York Liberty vs. Indiana Fever - TV/stream info
- When: Saturday, May 24
- Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse – Indianapolis, Indiana
- Time: 1 PM ET
- TV Channel: CBS
New York Liberty vs. Indiana Fever betting odds
The Liberty enter the game as -1.5-point favorites per DraftKings Sportsbook as of Friday. New York is also -122 on the moneyline.
The over/under has been set at 170.5.
How many triple doubles does Caitlin Clark have?
Clark’s season-opening triple-double against the Chicago Sky was the third of her WNBA career and made her the fastest to reach the mark, taking just 41 career games. It puts her in a tie with Candace Parker for third-most all-time. Coincidentally, her opponent Saturday, Ionescu, ranks second with four career triple-doubles.
Both players, though, have a long way to go to reach the career triple-doubles record held by Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas. Thomas boats 15 career triple-doubles and is still going strong in her 12th season.
Remarkably, though, Clark already has nearly 20% of all 20-point triple-doubles in WNBA history, per StatMuse.
Caitlin Clark has almost 20% of all 20-point triple-doubles in WNBA history.
— StatMuse (@statmuse) May 17, 2025
She's just starting her second season. pic.twitter.com/5CZDhaBMPF
