Caitlin Clark, Indiana Fever qualify for WNBA playoffs - ESPN

What's already been a landmark 2024 for guard Caitlin Clark got even better Wednesday, as the Indiana Fever qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2016. It ended the franchise's seven-season postseason drought that tied for the longest in WNBA history.

Clark, the No. 1 draft pick and front-runner for WNBA Rookie of the Year, and the Fever made the postseason despite being off on Tuesday. That was thanks to Las Vegas' 90-71 victory over Chicago and Phoenix's 74-66 win against Atlanta.

Indiana, which moved to 17-16 Sunday and has its first winning record since June 2019, is in sixth place in the WNBA, which sends eight teams to the playoffs.

Seven of the spots are taken now, as Phoenix, 17-17, also earned its playoff spot Tuesday after missing the postseason last year for the first time since 2012. Chicago and Atlanta, both 11-22, are battling for the last spot with Washington, which beat Dallas 90-86 Tuesday and is 10-23.

New York, Connecticut, Minnesota, Las Vegas and Seattle previously had earned their postseason spots.

Earlier this year, Clark became the all-time leading scorer in Division I basketball history and made her second straight national championship game to finish her Iowa career. Then she joined 2023 No. 1 pick and Rookie of the Year Aliyah Boston in Indiana.

Ever since the Fever's first media day in May, Clark has talked about the Fever's primary goal this season: making the playoffs for the first time since the franchise legend Tamika Catchings ended her career in 2016.

Before the drought, the Fever had made the playoffs for 12 years in a row, including winning the 2012 WNBA championship. But five of the last seven seasons, the Fever have had single-digit win totals. Attendance plummeted by