Fever Learn what it takes to win despite losing to former champions

By Madie Chandler | FeverBasketball.com

The Indiana Fever are eligible for the WNBA playoffs, but must first complete a historic season for the franchise while moving quickly through their post-Olympics schedule. After winning eight of 10 games since the break, Indiana fell to Las Vegas 86-75 on Wednesday. In the first of two meetings against A’ja Wilson and the Aces this week (the rematch is Friday), the Fever are viewing the mini-series as a pre-playoff test.

“When you see where you are, you can’t do better than that,” Kelsey Mitchell said of the series against Las Vegas. “… As a leader, it’s my job to make sure we have confidence, because even when we lost, that kind of thing goes away. Confidence always improves everything else.”

Mitchell has been in the WNBA for seven years, all with the Indiana Fever. This year marks the first season the Fever have qualified for the WNBA playoffs since Mitchell was drafted second overall in 2018. She scored Indiana’s best 24 points in Wednesday’s loss.

Both teams had efficient offenses coming into Wednesday’s game — Las Vegas had the WNBA’s best scoring average at 86.4 points per game, but Indiana wasn’t far behind at 84.7 points per game. Holding the Aces to their scoring average showed a defensive strength that coach Christie Sides hopes to carry into Friday’s game.

“I think the only thing I saw from that group down the stretch was a dog mentality of trying to get the next stop,” Mitchell said. “We made a really good run down the stretch of the game and I think they really turned it on in the timeout… And I think great teams become a different person, a different beast, a different group after a timeout.”

The Fever were outscored in all but one quarter despite taking an early 7-0 lead in the first quarter. They forced Las Vegas to take a timeout just 36 seconds into the game, and the Aces won the first quarter after the break 20-18.

Indiana struggled from the field – hitting less than 40 percent of their field attempts – and was successful on just 26.9 percent of their three-point attempts. Sharpshooter Caitlin Clark shot 27 percent, although she only hit one of her 10 three-point attempts.

“Overall, I didn’t feel like I played bad,” Clark said. “I felt like we really struggled as a group to make the shots we had been making since the second half started. And that’s how basketball is sometimes. I mean, they’re a great defensive team. You know they’re going to be physical against you. They’re tough, and that can wear you down pretty badly over the course of the game.”

Clark played all 45 minutes in Indiana’s overtime win over the Atlanta Dream on Sunday and played another 37 minutes in Wednesday’s loss. She and her Fever teammates can look forward to a restful Thursday before returning to Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Friday to apply everything they learned about the Aces in Wednesday’s game.