INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Fever won their third straight game with an 88-81 victory over the Washington Mystics at Gainbridge Fieldhouse
Here are three observations:
Fever wins third game in a row, fifth in seven games
The Indiana Fever are slowly but surely heating up in the WNBA.
After starting the season 2-9 with eleven games in twenty days, the Fever have now won five of their past seven games, and three in a row. Indiana enters the playoff race sitting in eighth place with a 6-10 record.
And they’re approaching something they haven’t achieved in nine years: four wins in a row.
Indiana last won four in a row in 2015, when the Tulsa Shock still existed and Indiana legend Tamika Catchings was still playing. The Fever make it four in a row on Friday in Atlanta – a team they defeated earlier this week,
Yes, all of their wins to date have come against teams in the bottom half of the WNBA, including the Dream, Chicago Sky and Washington Mystics. But piling up wins is crucial for a young team like the Fever, and they do it well.
Fever core four continues to flare up
For the second straight game, each of Indiana’s top four players finished the game in double figures: Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchel each had 22, Caitlin Clark had 18 and NaLyssa Smith had 11. Although it is the second straight game that this has happened, it’s only the second time the Fever has managed to get all of its stars – two No. 1 picks and two No. 2 picks – together.
Clark and Boston’s pick-and-roll and post-entry play also continues to develop: Boston started the game 3-for-3 from the field while Clark started with three assists. Clark also flirted with a triple-double for the second straight game on Wednesday, finishing with 16 points, 12 rebounds and six assists.
With 11 games in 20 days, the Fever had a difficult start to the season with little rest and little practice time. Now, with four games in 16 days, Indiana has had time to practice new offensive schemes and learn to work with playing experience to support them.
Aliyah Boston shows three-point range
Watch out, Fever sophomore center Aliyah Boston could become a threat beyond the arc.
Boston came to the Fever as a post that almost always played in the paint, but they needed to have at least three-point range – in case of emergency. Last season, she showed off her three-point range in a July game against the Liberty – a last-second three-pointer tied the score, forcing overtime against a top WNBA team. That time, she jumped into the arms of her teammates in celebration.
This year will be more normal for the reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Week. Boston found herself open beyond the arc, grabbed the ball, positioned her feet just beyond the three-point line and launched the ball toward the net. Swiss. The Fever bench jumped in celebration as Boston casually dropped back on defense.
This season, she is 4-for-10 in her limited attempts from beyond the arc. It’s a new part of her game and something that could become a threat to opponents.
How many points did Caitlin Clark score?
Caitlin Clark scored 18 points and led the Fever in rebounding with 12 boards. She also added six assists with six turnovers.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Caitlin Clark double-double helps Indiana Fever win third in a row
