Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever games coming to more local Iowa TV stations

More Iowans will be able to watch former Hawkeye women’s basketball superstar Caitlin Clark playing with the Indiana Fever and her first season in the WNBA.

Local broadcaster TEGNA, which owns Indianapolis NBC affiliate WTHR, announced plans in late April to broadcast 17 Indiana Fever games. The company announced Wednesday that it will expand the broadcast of those games to an additional 11 different markets through other stations it owns and deals with fellow broadcasters Nexstar and Gray Television. The expansion allows 17 games of the Indiana Fever to be aired for free in 2024.

The move means fans in two Iowa markets — including Des Moines — will have free opportunities to watch Clark and the Fever.

“We could not be more excited to make these exciting WNBA games available to more fans, in more homes, across more markets, including Caitlin Clark’s home state of Iowa,” said Brad Ramsey, senior vice president, media operations for TEGNA.

Which Iowa stations will air Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever games?

WNBA coverage will expand to two ABC stations in Iowa: WOI (Local 5 We Are Iowa) in Des Moines and WQAD in the Quad Cities. An additional 4.6 million homes will be able to watch Clark, the No. 1 draft pick. Games will also be available on TEGNA’s WHAS station in Louisville.

Which local stations will broadcast Indiana Fever games?

Stations airing the games (subject to change) include:

Indianapolis, Indiana: WTHR 13.1, 13.3 & WALV 46.1 (TEGNA)
Champaign-Springfield, Illinois: WCIX 49.1 & WCIA 3.1 (Nexstar)
Cincinnati: WXIX 19.3 (Gray Television)
Quad Cities: WQAD 8.1, 8.3 (TEGNA)
Dayton, Ohio: WKEF 22.3 (Sinclair)
Des Moines, Iowa: WOI 5.1 & KCWI 23.1 (TEGNA)
Evansville, Indiana: WFIE 14.2 (Gray Television)
Fort Wayne, Indiana: WPTA 21.3 (Gray Television)
Lafayette, Indiana: WPBY 35.1, 35.2 (Coastal Television Broadcasting Group)
Lexington, Kentucky: WKYT 27.2 (Gray Television)
Louisville, Kentucky: WHAS 11.1, 11.2 (TEGNA)
South Bend, Indiana: WCWW 25.1 & WMYS 69.1 (Weigel); WNDU 16.2 (Gray Television)

You can also access the games over the air with an antenna or if the stations are carried in your television subscription.

More:See Iowa women’s basketball’s 2024-25 conference schedule matchups for expanded Big Ten

When is Caitlin Clark’s first game with the Fever?

The Fever’s regular season starts Thursday, May 14. Clark and her new team will travel to Connecticut to play against the Connecticut Sun. The game will be aired nationally on ESPN2. After the team will return to Indianapolis for their home opener against the New York Liberty on May 16.

More:Former Iowa women’s basketball star Kate Martin avoids 3 more Las Vegas Aces roster cuts

Which Indiana Fever games will Local 5, other TEGNA stations broadcast?

The 17 games that TEGNA and its partner stations will broadcast include:

Thursday, May 16 vs. Liberty, 7 p.m. ET
Wednesday, May 22 @ Storm, 10 p.m. ET
Saturday, May 25 @ Aces, 9 p.m. ET
Thursday, May 30 vs. Storm, 7 p.m. ET
*Saturday, June 1 vs. Sky, 1 p.m. ET (subject to change)
Sunday, June 2 @ Liberty, 7 p.m. ET
Monday, June 10 @ Sun, 7 p.m. ET
Thursday, June 13 vs. Dream, 7 p.m. ET
Sunday, June 23 @ Sky, 6 p.m. ET
Thursday, June 27 @ Storm, 10 p.m. ET
Wednesday, July 10 vs. Mystics, 12 p.m. ET
Monday, August 26 @ Dream, 7:30 p.m. ET
Wednesday, September 4 vs. Sparks, 7 p.m. ET
Sunday, September 8 vs. Dream, 4 p.m. ET
Wednesday, September 11 vs. Aces, 7 p.m. ET
Sunday, September 15 vs. Wings, 3 p.m. ET
Thursday, September 19 @ Mystics, 7 p.m. ET

Leistikow: From local story to 18.9 million viewers, how Caitlin Clark changed the game’So happy I want to cry’: 7,000 fans celebrate Caitlin Clark, Iowa women’s basketball teamOn draft day, Caitlin Clark’s historic career turns the page to the next challengeIowa basketball’s Caitlin Clark selected No. 1 overall by Indiana Fever in 2024 WNBA DraftPhotos: Iowa women’s basketball stars Caitlin Clark, Kate Martin at Monday’s WNBA Draft

Will other Caitlin Clark games also be carried on local television stations in Iowa?

The Fever will be the most-televised team in the WNBA this season with 36 of its 40 games appearing on national television or streaming partners.

WOI in Des Moines and WQAD in the Quad Cities are both ABC affiliates, so they will also carry two nationally televised games: One against New York on May 18 and another against Seattle on Aug. 18.

CBS, including KCCI in Des Moines, will carry two games this season as well: One against Chicago on June 16 and another against New York on July 6.