Fever-Dream Game 2 draws bonkers viewership numbers

With the WNBA hitting an all-time high in fan popularity, it’s no surprise that, that momentum has carried over into the playoffs. While some of the league’s biggest names are not in the postseason such as Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese, that doesn’t seem to stop fans from watching. Earlier this week Game 2 of the opening round of the WNBA Playoffs between the Indiana Fever and Atlanta Dream drew the second-highest number of viewers for a Game 2 in league history, as per Chloe Peterson of The Indy Star.

Game 2 between the Fever and the Dream averaged around 1.5 million viewers as it was broadcast on ESPN. While Clark is on the Fever roster, she is sidelined for the remainder of the season due to a groin injury. The Fever are also without four other players in Sydney Colson, Sophie Cunningham, Aari McDonald and Chloe Bibby also due to season-ending injuries.

For all the fans that tuned in to watch Game 2 between the Dream and the Fever, they were able to witness the underdog Fever even up their opening round series of the WNBA Playoffs at one game apiece. The opening round of the postseason is a best-of-three series. This season, the WNBA switched their opening round to a 1-1-1 format instead of the old 2-1, ensuring the lower seed automatically hosts a playoff game.

Even without Clark in the lineup, the Fever have been incredibly resilient and formidable, clinching a playoff berth for the second consecutive year. In Game 2, the Fever were led by All-Star Kelsey Mitchell who dropped a team-high 19 points, Fellow All-Star Aliyah Boston added 15 points and Natasha Howard finished with 12 points.

On the flip side, the Dream had two players score in double figures in Rhyne Howard who had 11 points and rookie Te-Hina Paopao who had ten points. The deciding game between the Dream and the Fever will be played on Thursday with the winner advancing to the WNBA Semifinals.