The Washington Mystics defeated the Indiana Fever 92-91 tonight at Capital One Arena. Despite doing everything they could to make the playoffs, the Mystics were mathematically eliminated tonight when the Atlanta Dream defeated the New York Liberty.

Caitlin Clark’s history-making rookie season has been discussed ad nauseam; I don’t need to prove to you that she’s great. She’s so great that her games are moved to stadiums five times the size of their original venues to match her dazzling fame. She’s so great that I tore ligaments in my elbow and came straight from the emergency room to Capital One Arena because I couldn’t pass up the chance to see her play live (I wish I were joking about that). Clark holds all relevant rookie points and assist records, as well as the WNBA records for most assists in a season (329) and in a game (19).

Clark’s No. 22 jersey was ubiquitous at Capital One Arena, whether it was the Indiana Fever or Iowa Hawkeyes or even a plain white T-shirt with a giant “CLARK 22” written on it in Sharpie. Good luck to the Connecticut Sun, whose arena will no doubt be flooded with the same collection of memorabilia during their first-round series against Indiana.

Here are some of my notes from tonight’s game:

• The Mystics fell behind by 18 points just minutes into the first quarter. They played their best game of the season over the next quarter and a half, scoring three points after three while building a lead early in the second half.
• With the rankings set, Caitlin Clark went to the bench midway through the third quarter to cap off her assured Rookie of the Year campaign. Clark scored 8 points and dished out 8 assists on just five shots tonight.
• The Mystics led the entire second half and survived a scary moment at the final whistle – the Fever almost won the game with a buzzer beater.
• I have seen exactly one Indiana Fever jersey that did not have Caitlin Clark’s name on it. It was a Kelsey Mitchell Stranger Things-Jersey. Now That is a real fan.
• When Chappell Roan’s “Hot to Go” came over the PA during a timeout, Stefanie Dolson led the crowd in a dance to the song. This isn’t really a comment on the game, but it made me laugh out loud.

After starting the season 0-12, it’s a miracle the Mystics were even in the playoffs on the final day of play. Now, with a lottery pick in the 2025 draft, Washington has a shot at No. 1 overall pick and consensus top prospect Paige Bueckers.