The Indiana Fever suffered a disappointing 80-68 loss to the Atlanta Dream Sunday, September 14, when the two teams met at College Park Arena. The game was a major one for the Dream, who celebrated their first playoffs win since 2018, but highlighted a huge problem for the Fever: with so many players injured, it's crucial that everyone who is available steps up.
Unfortunately, yesterday's game was a bit of a one-woman show. Kelsey Mitchell admirably fought hard, racking up 27 points, 4 assists, and 1 rebound, but that solo effort wasn't enough. The Fever will return to Indiana to host the Dream at Gainbridge Fieldhouse this evening, and need Aliyah Boston, Lexie Hull, and Natasha Howard to step up now more than ever.
To be fair, Boston racked up 12 rebounds and effectively defended against the Dream's Brionna Jones and Brittney Griner, and she was also the victim of a few foul calls that weren't necessarily fair. That caused coach Stephanie White to sit her out for a huge chunk of the game, which is also when it seemed everything really went off the rails for Indiana.
As for Hull and Howard, the Fever simply needs more. While it's easy to point to officiating as a major reason why the loss was so pronounced, the Fever shot 34% from the two and 13% from the three-point line — absolutely dismal numbers for a team who has plenty of potential and has proven all season they are resilient and capable of far greater performances. If Mitchell hadn't played, the team would have shot under 30% for the entire game, and likely would have lost by 30 points — or more.
There were other factors that contributed to the loss, from the floor at College Park Arena (multiple players from both teams were seen slipping) to officiating that didn't seem entirely fair, but at the end of the day those only really count if the team is doing well — and apart from Mitchell, no one on the Fever played to the best of their abilities across the board Sunday night.
Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray made the game tough
The Fever also contended with the Dream's double-edged shooting sword: Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray both put up 20 points, and Naz Hillmon added on another 16. Gray's performance was especially impressive, and the Dream were 17 points better when she was on the floor than when she was not.
In fact, therein lies part of what Indiana needs to figure out: how to stop Gray, how to avoid foul trouble for Boston, and how to land some shots. The clock is ticking, and the two teams will return to the floor today at 7:30 p.m. ET.