SEATTLE — Jewell Loyd scored 23 of her season-high 34 points in the first half, played most of the game through swelling from her left eye, and the Seattle Storm held Caitlin Clark to just three points in the second half in an 89-77 victory over the Indiana Fever on Thursday night.
Seattle (11-6) improved to 2-0 early in a WNBA-record nine-game homestand, but the Storm won’t be on the road again until mid-July.
Clark finished with 15 points and seven assists in front of a sold-out crowd filled with fans, many of whom wore No. 22 jerseys with her name on the back.
But it was Lloyd who put on the show.
Loyd made five 3-pointers in the first 20 minutes and her 23 first-half points were the second-most by a WNBA player this season.
She also missed about five minutes of the first half after taking an errant hit around her left eye late in the first quarter.
Lloyd made six 3-pointers and 10 of 15 overall. This was her second game with 30 or more points this season, both of which came against Indiana.
She has recorded 30 or more points in 23 games, which is tied with Tina Charles for sixth-most in league history.
Climate Pledge Arena was sold out for the second time in five weeks, with Clark and the Fever drawing in more than 18,000 fans.
Spectators at this year’s event included Sue Bird, Megan Rapinoe, Pro Football Hall of Famer Walter Jones, JP Crawford of the Seattle Mariners and Damian Lillard of the Milwaukee Bucks.
Seattle made it a tough night for Indiana’s star rookie, especially in the second half, when the Storm’s pick-and-roll defense forced Clark to give up the ball multiple times.
She attempted just two shots after halftime and finished the game making 4 of 9.
There were times when Clarke was open but her teammates just couldn’t find her.
Clark appeared to hurt his left foot while driving to the basket early in the first quarter but denied the need for a substitution.
It took her more than eight minutes to find the scoreboard with a deep three-point shot.
She scored 12 points in the first half, but that wasn’t enough to keep up with Lloyd on the other side.
Eji Magbegor added 18 points and Nneka Ogwumike had 15 points and 11 rebounds for Seattle.
Erica Wheeler also scored 15 points for Indiana, and Kelsey Mitchell added 14 points.
