Caitlin Clark wins battle of No. 1 draft picks over Paige Bueckers

There was a battle of former No. 1 WNBA Draft picks on Friday night.

In one corner, it was 2024 No. 1 pick Caitlin Clark, and in the other corner, it was 2025 No. 1 draft pick Paige Bueckers.

Clark scored 29 points as her second-half offense sparked the Indiana Fever to a 98-87 victory against the visiting Dallas Wings on Friday night in Indianapolis.

Kelsey Mitchell poured in 23 points, Aliyah Boston had 16 points and Tyasha Harris drained all five of her 3-point attempts for 15 points off the bench for the Fever (22-12), who broke away with a big burst across the first five minutes of the fourth quarter.

Clark left the game late in the opening half with an apparent ankle injury but returned to start the second half and finished 11-for-18 from the field. She has four games in a row with at least 20 points.

Indiana has won three in a row and eight of its last 10 games. The Fever won back-to-back home games before going on a five-game road trip.

Bueckers led the Wings (20-15) with 29 points on 11-for-21 shooting. Arike Ogunbowale had a strong second half to end up with 20 points and Odyssey Sims added 11 points.

The Wings shot 18-for-20 on free throws to help stay in it while the Fever finished 11-for-13 at the foul line.

2024Clark heated up with 17 points in the third quarter even though she was without a 3-point basket until her sixth attempt from long range.But Bueckers was rolling as well. She had 25 points through three quarters, with the Wings clinging to a 66-63 advantage.

The Wings managed to hold a 37-35 halftime edge while shooting 35% from the field. Neither team was up by more than five points in the opening half.

Despite shooting 1-for-7 on 3-pointers, the Fever led 17-15 through the first quarter. With eight first-quarter points, Bueckers had more than half of Dallas' points.