Caitlin Clark drains bucket to win Fever's pregame halfcourt shot contest prize ahead of return from injury

Caitlin Clark is expected to make her highly anticipated return to the WNBA hardwood when the Indiana Fever host the undefeated New York Liberty Saturday afternoon.

Clark strained a quadriceps during the Fever’s 90-88 loss to the Liberty May 24 and was initially projected to miss two weeks. She has been sidelined for five games during a three-week span.

But it doesn't appear Clark's shooting skills diminished during her time away from competition.

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Shortly after the Fever announced Clark was cleared to play this weekend, the team shared a video of the 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year draining a shot from the team's logo during Friday's pregame halfcourt contest.

"CC locked in," the team wrote on X.

Clark celebrated by swinging a practice jersey in the air and jokingly instructing her Indiana teammates to "go cry about it."

FEVER, SKY MATCHUP DRAWS BIG VIEWERSHIP AS AN INJURED CAITLIN CLARK CHEERS FROM SIDELINES

The Fever guard also showed off the cash prize she won.

While the Fever gave Clark the green light to return to action Saturday, it remains unclear how much playing time she'll get. Clark told reporters she's been working her way back from injury over the past few weeks.

"It's definitely been a process," she said. "I think the hardest part is when you get to feel really good, and it's just a process of working yourself back into actually getting up and down and getting out there with my teammates. ... I'm super, super excited. Antsy to get out there. Probably shake off a little bit of rust."

In an Instagram post Friday, the Fever wrote, "She's back … Caitlin Clark is ready to play tomorrow against New York."

Fever head coach Stephanie White said Monday the team was ready for Clark to start "ramping back up," but she did not say whether Clark had been cleared for basketball activities. White added Thursday that Clark and Sophie Cunningham, who’s been sidelined since May 30, had "limited" reps during practice.

Clark is averaging 19 points, 9.3 assists and six rebounds in four games this season.

Fox News' Paulina Dedaj contributed to this report.

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