Known for a tremendous court vision and basketball IQ, can Caitlin Clark prove her ‘sensation’ today? The Indiana Fever will hit the court for a crucial game that could either dash their hopes of recapturing the magic of their 2012 championship run or give them one more shot at hosting the Connecticut Sun in the final game of the best-of-three series. Much of the pressure rests on rookie sensation Caitlin Clark, who had a less-than-ideal playoff debut with her team losing 93-69 and scoring just 11 points. However, hopes remain high, and for good reason—an ESPN analyst recently explained why AP ROTY’s comeback is more than possible.

ESPN analyst Elle Duncan joined Garry Striewski on her show to dive into the WNBA playoffs, highlighting how the Connecticut Sun effectively kept Caitlin Clark in her shell. However, she couldn’t help but also express her curiosity about tonight’s matchup, noting a key factor that suggests the No. 22 might be ready for a big fightback.

“What I’m interested to see is how does she bounce back! Because Clark’s been really really good in bounce-back performances. Technically she had 11 points, so she did hit double digits. But in every game this year where she’s had single digits or shot incredibly inefficiently like she did on Sunday, she’s averaging like over 26 points per game, more rebounds more everything,” noted the ESPN analyst.

Ending her take, Duncan finally added, “She does so much better in bounce-back games. I’m really interested to see the counter on,” stated the media expert via The Elle Duncan Show.

Earlier, Monica McNutt has also stated that the rookie “has a track record of when she has low-scoring games, which we haven’t seen many of, she bounces back with +25-point performances.” While she did manage to reach double digits against the Sun in Game 1, she seemed to have forgotten her shooting skills, with a disappointing 15.4 percent from three-point ranges.

Though Duncan’s take is just a prediction, her statement holds merit when looking closely at Caitlin Clark’s rookie season. Time and again, the first-overall pick has shown that subpar performances don’t shake her resolve or dampen her fighting spirit. If anything it does, it prepares her for taking a stronger punch.

Caitlin Clark’s regular-season pattern mirrors her ‘bounce-back’ mentality

The Fever guard has had four single-digit scoring games before the All-Star break, but as Duncan pointed out, she ‘bounced back’ impressively each time. Take her second game of the season against the New York Liberty, where the rookie managed just 9 points, shooting only 14.3 percent from beyond the arc. However, in their next matchup, Clark came out firing—dropping 22 points, dishing out 8 assists, and improving to an impressive 40 percent from deep.

Similarly, Clark faced another challenging night against the Las Vegas Aces, where she hit a low of 8 points. But that’s where her ‘bounce-back’ mentality started making a pattern, as she had her comeback in a big way against the LA Sparks, notching an impressive 30 points—her first time reaching that milestone in her rookie season.

This pattern continued when she scored only 3 points against the Liberty, only to hit a powerful knock again with another stellar performance, netting 30 points against the Mystics. Not only did she shine offensively, but she also showcased her shooting prowess, sinking 7 of her 13 attempts from three-point range for an impressive 53.8 percent success rate. All of this highlights Clark’s remarkable resilience and fighting spirit.

As Game 2 approaches, both Fever and Clark fans can only hope that Duncan’s analysis holds true, as they want to keep their team’s playoff dreams alive.