As the WNBA playoffs approach, the Indiana Fever will seek to bounce back from consecutive losses on Sunday in Chicago against the suddenly hot Sky.
Chicago has the faintest playoff hopes, but the Sky have reeled off three consecutive wins — including the last two at home.
The Fever already have clinched their playoff spot and are playing for improved seeding. But they will need to perform better than they did in a 109-102 loss to the New York Liberty on Saturday.
Indiana (24-14) shot 57.1% overall (40-for-70) and 42.3% from 3-point range (11-for-26) but missed half of its 22 free-throw attempts.
While the Fever’s big three of Kelsey Mitchell, Caitlin Clark, and Aliyah Boston combined for 68 points, they also shot a combined 9-for-16 at the foul line. Clark, a career 86.4% shooter from the line, missed three of four attempts — including a pair in the final minute.
The Fever pulled even at 100 with the Liberty on a Mitchell 3-pointer before surrendering the next seven points to seal the loss.
“It’s playoff basketball and there has to be urgency every single possession,” Indiana coach Stephanie White said of the postseason-like atmosphere of the game.
White described the Fever’s biggest issue as “consistency” and elaborated, “We got some really good things from the defensive end, and then there were lapses.”
Chicago (15-22) comes in off a 73-70 victory over the Golden State Valkyries on Friday. Two of its three consecutive were decided in the final seconds, with rookie guard Sydney Taylor drilling a 3-pointer with 0.6 seconds remaining to take down the Valkyries.
Taylor contributed 14 points to a balanced effort by the Sky, as she connected on 4-for-6 shots from 3-point range.
“She’s shown time and time again that she’s built for those moments,” Sky coach Tyler Marsh said. “And this team has shown time and again that we’re built for those moments.”
Natasha Cloud scored 17 points, while center Kamilla Cardoso posted a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Courtney Vandersloot added a dozen points and five assists. Chicago held Golden State to just 35.7% shooting (25-for-70).
“I thought we did a really good job of forcing them into tough shots,” Marsh said.
Chicago is six games behind the eighth-place Dallas Wings with seven to play in the regular season.
–Field Level Media
