INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Fever lost to the Washington Mystics 89-84 at the Camp Day Matinee on Wednesday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, overcoming a tremendous fourth quarter comeback.
The Fever trailed by 21 points before the fourth, but started the quarter with a 10–0 run. That run extended to 29-11, bringing the Fever to within three points of the Mystics, at one point.
Insider:The fever of the season’s best win followed by the WNBA’s worst loss. How do they bounce back?
Why more changes to the Fever lineup?‘A coach’s decision and we’ll leave it there.’
But a timely foul from Ariel Atkins, who finished the game with 26 points, gave the Mystics (6-17) enough breathing room with a minute left to secure the win.
Caitlin Clark filled the stat sheet with 29 points, 13 assists, five rebounds, five steals, three blocks and five made 3s.
The Fever, who were coming off a win over the WNBA’s best team (the Liberty), suffered a loss to one of the worst teams in the league.
Here are three observations:
Turnover has set the stage for a fever
If the Fever (9-14) want to build some lasting momentum before the Olympic break, this game — against the WNBA cellar-dwellers — was crucial.
But Indiana could not handle the ball.
The Fever turned the ball over eight times in the first quarter, leading to 24 shot attempts by the Mystics and only 12 for the Fever. Those turnovers came in a variety of ways: offensive fouls on both Katie Lu Samuelson and Kelsey Mitchell, ill-advised passes, and losing control of the ball.
While the Fever took control in the second quarter, they still had 12 turnovers at halftime; The mystics had five.
Indiana finished the game with 20 turnovers, its most since 22 turnovers in an 89–77 loss to Seattle on June 27. Aliyah Boston and Clark each had five. The Mystics got 21 points off those turnovers.
Lexi Hull starts, then sits out most of the game
Lexi Hull was in the starting lineup against Washington on Wednesday afternoon, two games into the DNP against the Mystics on July 2 – following a coach’s decision.
Hull was effective in the Fever’s win over the league-leading New York Liberty on July 6, and coach Christy Sides played her for 20 minutes – including the entire fourth quarter when the Fever battled back from a nearly double-digit deficit. Hull went 2 for 3 from the field for six points, with two rebounds, for a +/- of 6 in the five-point win.
Therefore, the sides decided to keep Hull in the starting lineup, moving Katie Lu Samuelson to the power forward position and moving Nalisa Smith, the team’s second-leading rebounder, off the bench. This is the sixth different starting lineup used by the Fever this season.
However, with the new lineup, the Fever struggled defensively and fell behind 26–18 after allowing 24 shot attempts to the Mystics in the first quarter. Hull only played seven minutes in the first half and recorded no statistics with a +/- of 11. Smith came in to fill the rest of the time, shifting Samuelsson back to small forward.
Smith then started the second half, with the side deciding to return to the starting lineup used for the previous three matches. Hull returned after 2 minutes of the third, and ended up playing 19 minutes – including most of the fourth quarter.
He finished the game with five points on 2-of-2 shooting, as well as two rebounds and two steals.
Aliyah Boston limited by foul trouble
The 4:25 mark of the third quarter was crucial for both Fever forward Aliyah Boston and Mystics forward Stephanie Dolson. Officials called a defensive foul on Dolson as Boston was going for a layup and it would have been Dolson’s fourth foul. But the Mystics challenged the call, as Boston elbowed Dolson in the face while going for the shot.
After the officials reviewed the call, the looks on the Fever’s faces told it all: It was a successful challenge, and what was supposed to be an and-1 turned out to be a missed basket and, more importantly, a crucial one. Boston’s fifth foul occurred at the junction.
Boston was in foul trouble throughout the game; He committed three fouls in about 10 minutes in the first half, forcing him to sit for the rest of the half. Then, with his fifth foul in just 25 minutes of play (and 16 minutes on the court), Boston was forced to sit late in the fourth quarter.
This was a big adjustment for the Fever team, as their offense usually runs through Boston. With the second-year center away for the remaining third, Indiana’s deficit grew from 14 points to 21 by the end of the quarter.
Boston got back into the game with 4:45 remaining in the fourth quarter and immediately took a lead, then got the rebound on the next possession. He, along with backup Demiris Dantas, helped lead the Fever on a 25–9 run throughout the quarter, giving them a lead of nearly 21 points.
How many points did Caitlin Clark score?
The Fever rookie doubled his fourth-straight points-assist tally with 29 points and 13 assists. He added five rebounds, as well as five steals and three blocks. He also had five turnovers.
Discover more from news2source
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
