The Indiana Fever hosted the defending champion New York Liberty with hopes of asserting themselves as serious contenders this season. While the hype around the Caitlin Clark vs. Natasha Cloud backcourt showdown drew national attention, it was Aliyah Boston who commanded the stat sheet.
But Fever head coach Stephanie White had more pressing concerns – particularly with her rookie guard’s growing pains.
Clark finished the game with 18 points and 10 assists, but it was her inefficiency and costly mistakes that left White looking for more.
The former Iowa star shot just 6-of-18 from the field, including 2-of-11 from beyond the arc, and committed 10 of Indiana’s 15 turnovers – including a pivotal one in the final seconds that sealed their fate.
“It’s disappointing, you know, that it, that it, that it doesn’t go both ways or it hasn’t gone both ways. But we also can’t allow that to consume us, right? Like we’ve got to be able to, to play through that. We’ve got to be able to control the things that we can control,” said White.
White pushes Boston to take ownership of the Fever’s offense
While Clark‘s struggles stole the postgame headlines, White was quick to acknowledge the bright spots – starting with Aliyah Boston.
The third-year center erupted for 27 points and 13 rebounds, continuing a stellar start to her 2025 season. But even that performance wasn’t immune to criticism.
“You know, I felt like at times our late game execution was good… We’re still not recognizing our mismatches. You know, I felt like AB had plenty of opportunities. We could have gotten her touches down low and, you know, we, we had some turnovers, key turnovers,” White explained.
Boston‘s impact goes beyond the stat sheet. Through four games this year, she’s averaging career-highs across the board, including 15.7 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game, shooting over 59% from the floor. Her connection with Clark has become one of the WNBA’s most promising duos. Six of Clark‘s eight first-half assists in this game were to Boston – a testament to their chemistry.
White has made it clear Boston won’t be used as just a finisher. In the preseason, the coach emphasized the plan to position Boston as an offensive “hub,” where she can initiate plays, make decisions, and capitalize on mismatches.
“I think sometimes when we use the term hub, oftentimes they think passing all the time and it’s not. It’s using her to get into another action,” White said. “I want her to be a little bit more selfish in that from that standpoint, but I think that’s going to come. It’s going to come when she gets more comfortable in her reads.”
By placing better shooters around her and giving her the freedom to move, White believes Boston can become the engine of the Fever‘s attack. It’s clear that Indiana’s head coach is holding her young stars to a championship standard – and with Clark and Boston leading the way, that vision might be closer than it seems.
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