Clark returns from back injury, scores 22 as Fever beat Valkyries

Clark returns from back injury, scores 22 as Fever beat Valkyries

Caitlin Clark returned from a back injury to score 22 points and dish nine assists, powering the Indiana Fever to a 90-82 victory over the Golden State Valkyries at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on May 22, 2026. Clark had been ruled out of Indiana’s previous game against the Portland Fire fewer than two hours before tipoff, but was absent from the injury report the following day and returned to the starting lineup without restriction.

Center Aliyah Boston provided the complementary force Indiana needed, finishing with 20 points and 16 rebounds for a double-double – the second-highest scoring performance on the night. The win extended the Fever’s winning run to three consecutive games. Clark’s absence against the Portland Fire, a game Indiana won 90-73, had been her first missed contest of the 2026 season, and her rapid return will offer the franchise significant reassurance given the injury difficulties she faced in 2025, when a groin strain and an ankle bone bruise limited her to just 13 games in her second WNBA season.

Clark, the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer and 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year, has been central to the Fever’s competitive resurgence. Indiana had also received a league warning related to its handling of Clark’s injury reporting around the time of the Portland Fire game, a matter that added institutional scrutiny to what was otherwise a straightforward absence.

The Fever and Valkyries are scheduled to meet again the following Thursday, with the rematch taking place in San Francisco. Indiana will travel to the West Coast having won three straight, while Clark, if fully fit, will aim to build on a performance that fell one assist short of a double-double.