WNBA ready for the spotlight with All-Star Game in Indiana this weekend

NEW YORK — The WNBA finishes off the first half of its season this week before heading into the All-Star break in Indiana, which will be a showcase for young star Caitlin Clark.

The Fever have three all-stars with Clark, Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell all playing in the game Saturday. Clark, who is one of the captains, took both her Indiana teammates for her team in the game.

Before Saturday's contest, the Fever have a busy week with back-to-back games, first in Boston against Connecticut and then in New York on Wednesday.

Indiana is trying to get some momentum heading into the break as they are just over .500 heading into Tuesday night's game.

Minnesota, led by the other All-Star captain, Napheesa Collier, has the best record in the league at 19-4. The Lynx played four games in six days over a stretch they went 2-2. They have one more game against second-place Phoenix on Wednesday before heading into the break.

Sidelined

Atlanta's Rhyne Howard will be sidelined for the rest of the month with a left knee injury she picked up against Indiana. Howard earned her third All-Star nod earlier this month and was drafted by Team Collier. Commissioner Cathy Engelbert named Minnesota's Kayla McBride as Howard's replacement on Tuesday afternoon. It's McBride's fifth All-Star appearance.

Howard is expected to make a full recovery and a timeline for her return will be provided at a later date, the Dream said.

Strong ratings

ABC had its most watched WNBA game ever on Saturday when Paige Bueckers and Dallas faced Clark and Indiana. The Fever won in a blowout in the first pro matchup between the two star guards. The game averaged 2.1 million viewers.

Record breaker

Naz Hillmon played in her 128th straight game, setting an Atlanta franchise record by passing Iziane Castro Marques' mark of 127. Natisha Heidman of Minnesota has the longest active streak with 199 consecutive games played. Dawn Staley holds the league record with 263.

Power poll rankings

Phoenix moved up to the No. 1 spot, passing Minnesota after beating the Lynx last week. The Mercury haven't been in the top spot since 2018. The Lynx were second and New York was third. Atlanta, Indiana and Seattle followed the Liberty. Washington moved up two spots to seventh with Golden State and Las Vegas next. Chicago, Los Angeles, Dallas and Connecticut rounded out the poll.

Player of the week

Alyssa Thomas of Phoenix averaged 23 points, eight assists and seven rebounds to help the Mercury win both their games last week. Other players receiving votes were Shakira Austin of Washington and Angel Reese of Chicago.

Game of the week

Team Clark vs. Team Collier, Saturday. The league's All-Star Game will take place Saturday in Indianapolis and Clark will surely want to put on a show for her hometown fans.

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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball