Fever heating up as Dream head in opposite direction

Field Level Media|published: Thu 20th June, 17:52 2024

Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) rushes up the court Wednesday, June 19, 2024, during the game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Indiana Fever defeated the Washington Mystics, 88 - 81. The Indiana Fever defeated the Washington Mystics, 88 - 81.

After a forgettable start to the season, the Indiana Fever are vying for their fourth straight win on Friday as they begin a five-game road trip in College Park, Ga., against the Atlanta Dream.

Behind rookie sensation Caitlin Clark, Indiana (6-10) has rebounded from a 1-8 start.

In their most recent win on Wednesday, the Fever topped the Washington Mystics 88-81 behind 22 points apiece from Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell, in addition to Clark's 18 points, 12 rebounds, six assists and four steals.

"We've been playing a lot better team basketball," Boston said. "Everyone's getting their touches, knocking down their shots, so that's been really great. I also think our defensive intensity has been a focus for us, and it's able to spark our offense."

Undefeated at home in June, Indiana has used consecutive home-court sellouts to its advantage.

"We feel the energy," Boston said. "We're just thankful that they continue to show up and that they're super loud, because we're playing hard for them."

On the season, Clark leads the team with 16.3 points per game, followed by Mitchell's 15.9 and Boston's 12.9.

Hoping to dash the Fever's hopes of a fourth straight win, Atlanta (6-7) looks to get its season back on track. Winners in four of their first six games, the Dream are 2-5 in June and things may have gone from bad to worse on Wednesday.

During Atlanta's 68-55 loss to the Minnesota Lynx, leading scorer Rhyne Howard (15.4 ppg) exited in the third quarter with an injured left ankle after stepping on the foot of Minnesota's Courtney Williams.

"I think we all kind of had an understanding that we had to pick up because Rhyne's such a big part of the team," Atlanta guard Haley Jones said. "We had to play for her and pick up everything that she does for us, whether it's scoring, just being a presence on the court, her aggressiveness."

Howard is being evaluated through further testing on Thursday. Allisha Gray's 15.2 points per game rank second for Atlanta, followed by Tina Charles' 12.6.

--Field Level Media

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