INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A moment in 2023 that still haunts the hearts of IU basketball faithful also serves as the launching point for the newest book about Caitlin Clark.

In a late-season game, Clark buried a three point dagger for the University of Iowa to knock off #2 Indiana University, further serving notice of a new era in basketball – and fully convincing columnist Christine Brennan that we were all watching history in the making.

“Clark launched a wild shot from a ridiculous position, off-balance, left leg askew,” Brennan writes in the first pages of “On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women’s Sports.”

“It was crazy and almost laughable. There’s no way on earth something like that could go in – until it did.”

Brennan points to it as the moment she understood that Clark’s talent would soon become much more than merely a basketball story.

Her siblings all attended IU. Brennan indicates that, even in defeat, the moment transfixed them all.

“You watch it, and you know what you do? You want to watch a replay and another replay,” Brennan shared in a book tour visit with WISH-TV’s Daybreak. “And you kind of can’t get it out of your head. And we’re all texting about it, and other friends are texting. ‘Did you see that?!’”

Brennan’s book covers Clark’s rise through the college record books, on-court rivalries that shaped public perception, Clark’s professional start in Indiana, the reaction of other players in the WNBA, and Brennan’s belief that the league botched its biggest opportunity.

Brennan also blisters USA Basketball, calling one decision in particular the worst she has seen in four decades of sports coverage.

The author weighed in on several topics during Daybreak. Some of those answers are listed below.

On Clark’s star power:

“I realized she’s a basketball player, absolutely, but she’s really an entertainer. When she’s chucking it from the parking lot and it’s going in, that’s where grandmothers are in the produce section talking to their friends about what they just saw that basketball player.”

On men becoming WNBA fans:

“All these years -decades- sports has been a male domain. Thankfully, because of Title IX, now we have our daughters, nieces having the opportunities, and moms are now who are in their 40s, played sports as well, and they’re coaching their daughters. (But) it’s still the guys. You get the guys, you’re going to get the ratings. And it’s those guys who used to laugh about women’s basketball. And now they’re probably wearing #22 jerseys, not just to the game, but to the grocery store and the gas station.”

On Indiana as Clark’s pro home:

“It’s literally the basketball capital of the world. And the love of Olympic sports and the respect for women and women leaders in this state. So you throw all that in, and it’s the perfect spot. (It’s) also only a six hour drive from Iowa City. I’m sure many people in Indiana have seen all those Iowa license plates.. . And the Midwest, the Big Ten – it’s Caitlin Clark from the Big Ten in Big Ten country? Absolutely perfect.”

On Clark’s omission from the 2024 Olympic roster:

“I’ve seen some bad team and athlete selection decisions in the 40 years I’ve covered the Olympics. This is the worst by far.” – from the book.

“The spotlight shining on Caitlin Clark is the attention magnet. You put the spotlight on her and all those players on the U.S. Olympic team, all the players, obviously, in the WNBA, get more attention. We’ve seen it with the all-star voting. Because that spotlight is now shining on all of them. They deserved it for years. They never got it. This would have been the moment.”

On whether the first injuries of Caitlin Clark’s career are concerning:

“Yeah. It sure is. I mean, first of all, for her, you know, she’s so competitive. She loves to play. She loves to practice… It is disconcerting, and I certainly hope that these injuries are behind her because she wants to play. The WNBA and the Fever clearly need her.”

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Brennan is holding two book events Friday. The first is at 1 p.m. at the Carmel Public Library, and the second “pop-up” event is from 5 – 7 p.m. at the Le Meridien Hotel downtown.

Brennan says she will give a copy of the book to any young readers who arrive wearing a jersey. She also plans to be back in town for WNBA All-Star events.

Those interested in the Carmel library event can register here.

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