- Clark scores 28 in 101-93 win over Dallas
- Indiana above .500 for first time this season
Caitlin Clark had 28 points and 12 assists and the Indiana Fever overcame a record-tying nine three-pointers from Arike Ogunbowale in a 100-93 victory over the Dallas Wings on Sunday.
Kelsey Mitchell scored 36 points, including a three that gave the Fever a four-point lead with 1:58 remaining in a meeting of teams that entered with matching three-game winning streaks.
Ogunbowale finished 9 of 16 from long range – beating her previous career best of seven – and scored 34 points. The All-Star Game MVP missed two attempts at a record 10th 3-pointer, including one with the Wings trailing by six in the final minute.
Ogunbowale, who tied a career high with eight rebounds, matched the league record for 3s held by Mitchell (2019) and Seattle’s Jewell Loyd (2023).
“I salute people like Arike because off the court, we’re really great friends,” Mitchell said. “We tend to work out and train together in the offseason. I wasn’t expecting any other way coming from a person like that.”
Clark and Mitchell hit five deep-shots apiece, combining to go 10 for 18 as the Fever shot 50% from long range and 53% overall.
“When you have two guards that are both making plays, it puts the other team in the tough position of what to take away, who to put on who,” Clark said. “We’re definitely shooting it well. We’re playing off each other well. We’re looking for each other, and we’re getting downhill, too. I think it’s been a good balance of everything.”
Clark was coming off a career-high 31 points in a win over fellow rookie of the year contender Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky. She set a WNBA record with 19 assists in her first regular-season visit to Texas in the game before the Olympic break, a 101-93 Indiana loss when the Fever were on the edge of the playoff picture.
Now, Indiana (17-16) is above .500 for the first time with Clark and solidly in the playoff mix while the Wings (9-23) are still hoping to recover from a slow start triggered by injuries to several key players. Dallas, who won their first playoff series last year, are two games out of the final postseason spot with eight remaining.
The Fever are 6-1 since the Olympic break with three of those victories on the road. The reward is six consecutive home games starting Wednesday against the last-place Los Angeles Sparks before the regular-season finale at Washington.
“They’ve laid it out there. We just keep talking about emptying our tank,” Indiana coach Christie Sides said. “The confidence that they’re playing with, I’m proud of the road games. The road games have been tough. We just keep talking about momentum, keeping our foot on the gas.”
After making her eighth three-pointer in the third quarter, Ogunbowale was called for a foul for not giving Kelsey Mitchell a landing area on a three.
The Wings challenged, and lost, which led to Ogunbowale getting a technical foul. The Fever scored five points on that possession, cutting their deficit to 67-64 after Dallas had taken its biggest lead at 64-55 less than two minutes earlier.
Mitchell added two free throws after her crucial three as the Fever scored eight consecutive points for a 99-91 lead with 39 seconds remaining.
Satou Sabally scored 25 points, and Natasha Howard had 18 points and nine assists for the Wings. NaLyssa Smith had 14 points and eight rebounds for Indiana.
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Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/sep/02/caitlin-clark-leads-fever-to-fourth-straight-win-as-indiana-close-on-playoff-spot
Author : Associated Press
Publish date : 2024-09-02 10:41:25
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