Still, this marks a historic step for Clark and the league, becoming the first-ever WNBA game at CHA. Not only that, but Fever vs. Brazil, broadcast on ESPN, also marked one of the four WNBA preseason games to be nationally televised this year, another record.

A day that started with Caitlin Clark’s triumphant return to Carver-Hawkeye Arena ended with the WNBA basking in the spotlight. No Iowa athlete in the last 80 years can match Clark’s impact, and that was on full display from the parking lot tailgates four hours before tipoff to the 117-decibel explosion when she connected on her first 3-pointer Sunday afternoon.

Clark helped lead the Fever to a dominant 108-44 win over Brazil in her preseason debut on Sunday in her familiar former home of Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa. Clark finished with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc while adding six rebounds, five assists and one block.