Caitlin Clark, Paige Bueckers Handshake in Fever-Dream Game Speaks Volumes

Clark and Bueckers’ pregame handshake was short and sweet. It is unclear if the two exchanged words, but there’s no denying that the moment speaks volumes about how both stars were locked in ahead of their much-anticipated clash. They both had their game faces on and were clearly ready to go to battle.

Bueckers turned in a strong performance in this one as well, scoring a game-high 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting, to go along with four rebounds, four assists, two steals and two triples in 33 minutes of play. It was far from enough, though, as the Wings suffered another blowout loss to fall to 6-16 this season.

Clark made it clear before the game that there’s no animosity between her and Bueckers, sharing how they’ve “always been friends.” Bueckers, on the other hand, said after the matchup that it’s always “fun” whenever she gets to battle Clark on the court.

Either way, what can be said for sure is that Sunday was merely the first chapter of what should be a long and lasting WNBA rivalry between these two stars.