One of the biggest hoops stars in the world is coming to Baltimore this year. Twice.

The Washington Mystics will play two of their biggest games of the WNBA season at CFG Bank Arena, facing Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever on May 28 and Sept. 7 — the city’s most high-profile basketball dates in years.

Every year, the Mystics bring four of their high-wattage regular-season games from CareFirst Arena in Southeast D.C. to Capital One Arena downtown. Capital One Arena hosted games featuring Clark and Randallstown native Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky last season.

But, with Capital One Arena undergoing renovations, the Mystics outsourced two home games against the Fever to Baltimore, which has been in the hunt for high-level basketball events since CFG Bank Arena finished $250 million in renovations in 2023. CFG Bank Arena has hosted the Division II Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men’s and women’s tournaments for the last three years but has not hosted a pro basketball event since it reopened.

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The Baltimore arena’s general manager, Frank Remesch, said he connected with Mystics Chief Business Officer Alycen McAuley over LinkedIn when the franchise was looking for an alternate site for its high-draw games. After touring the arena, which primarily draws concerts, the Mystics and CFG Bank Arena quickly came to terms.

The arena last hosted men’s NCAA tournament games in 1995, and it has been years since the Wizards played an exhibition game in Baltimore. Booking the WNBA games is a breakthrough for basketball events in the city.

“I think we’ve proven all we can when it comes to concerts,” said Remesch, who noted 38 of the arena’s 60 concerts were sold out last year. “To get these games, these are kind of feathers in our cap.”

The two Mystics games will be the first time the D.C. franchise has played in Baltimore. As league interest and attendance have ramped up nationwide, McAuley said, Baltimore and Maryland fans are flocking to Mystics games in greater numbers, too. The team said it saw an 85% increase in ticket buyers from Baltimore County and City.

The Mystics were aware that Maryland fans support Brenda Frese’s Terps, a perennial NCAA powerhouse, and that Reese filled the seats when her LSU team visited Coppin State in 2023. She’s hopeful that enthusiasm translates to a packed house for the Mystics vs. Fever matchups.

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“We’re very bullish on these games,” McAuley said in an interview with The Banner. “We love the idea that we’re bringing our game and the WNBA product to Baltimore and this fervent fan base.”

Clark, however, is the biggest draw.

The WNBA’s 2024 Rookie of the Year was a force on and off the court last season, her wide appeal helping spike attendance numbers and ratings. The Fever drew more than 16,000 fans per game, nearly double the league attendance average. Last year, the Fever vs. Mystics matchup at Capital One Arena set a WNBA record for the largest crowd, with more than 20,000 fans in attendance.

Clark’s rivalry with Reese potentially adds an edge to her tour through the Baltimore area. The two have sparred throughout their careers, including in the 2023 NCAA title game (which Reese’s LSU squad won) and the 2024 Elite Eight (Clark’s Iowa team prevailed).

But the two have also lowered the temperature on their on-court battles. Clark told Time magazine in December: “We’re not best friends, by any means, but we’re very respectful of one another. … The only thing people cared about was this controversy that was really fabricated and made up, and then that has continued to be the case ever since.”

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Remesch said he first caught on to Clark from a coworker two years ago. After watching highlights of the future all-time leading NCAA scorer, he quickly realized how special she was. He anticipates that tickets, which go on sale April 3, will go fast.

“It’s like selling Bruce Springsteen,” he said. “You don’t have to be a marketing genius. You open the window and say there’s tickets.”

Neither the Mystics franchise nor CFG Bank Arena has announced future WNBA games beyond 2025, but Capital One Arena renovations are expected to continue through the summer of 2027. McAuley acknowledged future Mystics games in Baltimore are a possibility if this series goes well.

“I’m hoping that we see tremendous success,” she said. “There’s always been great energy around our game. Now we’re seeing it get the visibility it deserves.”