The Fever like to play fast. Even without Caitlin Clark, the Fever currently lead all playoff teams in pace. Kelsey Mitchell is a big reason for that. She is one of the fastest guards in the league, but several of her teammates also thrive in the fast break.
Playing fast was the main reason the Fever could get a surprising win against the Las Vegas Aces in their semifinals opener. Indiana is the lowest seed left in the playoffs. As the sixth seed, they weren’t expected to survive the first round. However, they beat the Dream and now also took a 1-0 lead over the Aces, who entered the playoffs as the second seed.
After the game, a visibly frustrated Becky Hammon said, “We couldn’t keep up with their pace.”
The Aces have hovered around the middle of the league when it comes to pace all season long and struggled on defense for a significant stretch. They cleaned that up, finishing the regular season as one of the best defensive teams over the last 15 games of the season. However, in the playoffs, some of their bad defensive habits have returned. Against the Storm, the Aces struggled to defend the 3-point line. Against the Fever, they gave up 15 fast-break points.
If the Fever can continue to exploit that, they will have a chance to advance to the finals. However, that will become more difficult with every game. After a 89-73 defeat, the Aces should come into Game 2 ready to play faster on both ends of the floor.
The Fever handed out another upset
The Fever are thriving as underdogs this postseason. They already handed out three upsets. Kelsey Mitchell led the way with 34 points, 3 assists, and 2 steals. Odyssey Sims pitched in 17 points, 3 assists, and 3 steals, Natasha Howard recorded a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Aliyah Boston played good defense on A’ja Wilson.
As a team, the Fever were excellent from the free-throw line, sinking 16 of their 17 attempts. They also won the rebounding battle and dished out 17 assists. On top of that, the Fever won the battle in the paint 50-38 and got 15 fast-break points compared to the Aces’ nine points.
The Fever successfully turned around a season that seemed all but over
Indiana simply couldn’t escape the injury bug this season. They lost Caitlin Clark, Sophie Cunningham, Aari McDonald, Sydney Colson, and Chloe Bibby to season-ending injuries. Damiris Dantas is also out with a concussion and hasn’t suited up in the playoffs yet. The Fever’s season could have been over long ago, but the team persevered and exceeded expectations.