The ball left Kelsey Mitchell's hands with 7:57 remaining in the third quarter, a 24-foot attempt from beyond the arc that dropped cleanly through the net. The basket, assisted by Caitlin Clark, moved the Indiana Fever guard past A'ja Wilson for the highest-scoring single season in WNBA history.
Mitchell's 1,023rd point of the 2026 campaign came during Friday's road game against the Toronto Tempo. It broke the record of 1,021 points that Wilson set across 38 games in 2024. The WNBA confirmed the milestone on social media shortly after the shot fell.
The record is the latest in a season full of them for Mitchell. She reached 1,001 points in 40 games, becoming just the second player in league history to hit that mark. Wilson was the first to reach 1,000 points in a season and remains the fastest to do so.
Mitchell had already taken Wilson's record for consecutive 20-point games earlier this year. The Fever guard averaged 28.9 points over 11 games in August, a stretch that led the WNBA by nearly four points per game and stood as the highest scoring average over at least eight games in league history.
Friday's game also saw Mitchell set the Indiana Fever franchise record for most three-pointers made in a single season. Her 123rd triple of the year came with five minutes left in the first half, again assisted by Clark.
The record chase is far from settled. Wilson currently sits at 991 points through 38 games with three contests remaining in the regular season. The Las Vegas Aces star leads the league with a scoring average of 26.1 points per game, leaving open the possibility that she could surpass Mitchell and claim the record back before the postseason begins.
Mitchell has now recorded 33 games with at least 20 points. She needs two more such performances to break Wilson's single-season record of 34, which Wilson set in 2024. Wilson could still tie that mark this season.
The context of the rivalry matters. Wilson was the league MVP in 2024 and last season. She is the only player in WNBA history to win four MVP awards and appears headed for a fifth, which would be her third in a row. Mitchell, drafted No. 2 overall by the Fever out of Ohio State in 2015, is the league's second-leading scorer this season at 25 points per game.
The Fever have been campaigning for Mitchell and Clark as co-MVPs this season. The organization's push comes as Indiana enters the postseason as the fifth seed.
Mitchell's scoring run has been the defining storyline of the Fever's season. She has been the primary offensive engine, with Clark's playmaking setting up many of her looks from deep. The two have formed one of the most productive guard duos in the league, and the co-MVP campaign reflects how central both have been to Indiana's success.
The record-breaking moment itself was fitting. A catch-and-shoot three from deep, created by Clark's vision, executed by Mitchell's mechanics. The ball went through, the milestone was reached, and the chase for more points continues.
Wilson still has games left. Mitchell still has games left. The number at the top of the list could change again before the regular season closes. For now, the record belongs to Mitchell, and the Fever guard keeps adding to it.
According to Yahoo Sports.