BOSTON \u2014 The last time there was a WNBA game at TD Garden, it was sold out with more than 19,000 fans.<\/p>\n
It\u2019ll be a similar situation Tuesday night when not only Caitlin Clark takes the court, but also All-Star Aliyah Boston, who grew up in Massachusetts.<\/p>\n
Boston was honored at the State House Monday ahead of her game Tuesday night at TD Garden when the Indiana Fever play the Connecticut Sun.<\/p>\n
She went from playing high school basketball at Worcester Academy to becoming the number one pick in the WNBA.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is going to be the second year in a row that the TD Garden has sold out,\u201d said Gov. Maura Healey about the game Tuesday.<\/p>\n
This game is the hottest ticket in town, which says a lot for a sports city like Boston.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe bought a block of tickets trying to encourage especially young women to get out and see other women play,\u201d said Paul Pedevillano, who\u2019s excited to attend the game Tuesday.<\/p>\n
He says he\u2019s looking forward to seeing not only Boston play but also Caitlin Clark.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously her shooting and her skill level has brought in new attention to the game so it\u2019s great, the crowds are bigger, the salaries are going up,\u201d said Pedevillano.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s taken so long to just get here, so it\u2019s amazing just to see them flourish and just wishing them more and more success,\u201d said Nicolette Aduama, Senior Associate Director at Northeastern University\u2019s Center for the Study of Sport in Society.<\/p>\n
Aduama says players like Clark and Boston are making a huge impact on women\u2019s basketball.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese players have brought such energy and such viewership and such a following and such a storyline that they\u2019ve really blown the lid off of the possibility that women can be successful, make money, do what they love in this world of sports,\u201d said Aduama.<\/p>\n
State leaders say it\u2019s especially inspiring to see someone like Boston, who grew up playing basketball in Massachusetts, lead the way for the next generation of female athletes.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t ever let anyone determine your worth, don\u2019t let anyone tell you what you can or can\u2019t be in life because you are more than that and everyone\u2019s path is different,\u201d said Boston. \u201cSo don\u2019t compare your path to the person to your left or right because it\u2019s never gonna be the same, so just embrace your journey and do the best you can and dream big.\u201d<\/p>\n
The governor says with this much interest, she hopes the city of Boston will one day have its own WNBA team.<\/p>\n
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