The Indiana Fever are surging at the right time, notching their third consecutive victory with a 107-101 win over the Phoenix Mercury at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Improving to 15-12 on the season, Indiana remains in sixth place in the WNBA standings, but head coach Stephanie White made it clear after the final buzzer that there’s no room for comfort.
Playing without star Caitlin Clark, the Fever once again turned to their supporting cast, and the response was emphatic.
Aari McDonald exploded for a career-best 27 points on 7-for-11 shooting, providing a needed spark with Kelsey Mitchell struggling to find her shot. Mitchell, Indiana’s top scorer this season, finished with just eight points on a 3-for-10 clip.
Aliyah Boston stepped up with a dominant all-around performance, adding 22 points and 12 rebounds to help anchor the team on both ends of the court.
Fever’s depth shines in comeback win
Despite the final result, it wasn’t a wire-to-wire performance. Indiana fell behind early, trailing by 10 at the end of the first quarter as the Mercury stormed out to a 30-20 lead. But a decisive second quarter flipped the momentum, with the Fever outscoring Phoenix 35-20 to go into halftime with the edge.
The second half turned into a back-and-forth battle, with the Mercury briefly pulling ahead early in the fourth quarter. But Indiana responded with a timely 10-0 run that sealed the win and kept their playoff momentum intact.
After the game, White delivered a passionate message to her players in the locker room, both commending their effort and warning against complacency.
“Just a hell of a job,” White told her team. “That was a big win. We stacked a day. We got to continue to stack. Okay? We ain’t got no room for sliding back, okay? No room for slippage. Every day, there’s a sense of urgency. Okay?”
Despite their recent winning streak, the Fever are walking a tightrope in the playoff race. They’re just one game ahead of the seventh-place Las Vegas Aces and a game and a half above the Washington Mystics in eighth. The Valkyries, currently ninth, are only two games behind.
That slim margin means Indiana cannot afford to take any opponent lightly in the weeks ahead. Their upcoming schedule includes pivotal matchups against the Dallas Wings, Seattle Storm, Los Angeles Sparks, another rematch with Phoenix, and the Chicago Sky. Each of those contests carries significant implications for the standings.
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