SEATTLE — Fans in Seattle got to see one of basketball's biggest stars Wednesday night.
Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever were in the Emerald City to play against the Seattle Storm in front of a sold-out crowd at Climate Pledge Arena at 7 p.m.
Fans also witnessed Seattle Storm rookie Nika Muhl's WNBA debut. Muhl, a Croatian citizen, had to miss some of the first games of the season due to issues with her professional visa.
Muhl and Clark played against each other for the first time since the NCAA Final Four, when their alma maters, the University of Connecticut and the University of Iowa, faced off.
The women's NCAA tournament brought in record numbers of viewers and that excitement has continued into their start in the WNBA.
The "Caitlin Clark effect" and many other stars in this year's rookie class aren't only bringing more eyes to the women's games, they are also inspiring the future of female athletes.
Friends of Hoop Seattle, a year-round club basketball program, brought its 15-year-old girls' team to watch Clark take the court.
Buckley's in Lower Queen Anne has hosted Iowa fans for two decades and those who didn't score a ticket were expected to fill the place Wednesday to watch Clark play.
"We had better business with the women's Iowa game than we did for any of the single March Madness games with the guys," said owner Tm Buckley of the sensation that is Caitlin Clark.
But he was still hoping for a hometown win.
"I want her to win, but not tonight," Buckley said.