Caitlin Clark’s double-double helps Fever win third straight game
Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston each scored 22 points, Caitlin Clark had her second career double-double and the Indiana Fever won their third straight game with an 88-81 victory over the Washington Mystics on Wednesday night.
Clark had 18 points and a career-high 12 rebounds plus six assists and four steals for the Fever (5-10). Clark credited her teammates for giving her a great night at the plate.
“Sometimes the ball just bounces your way a little bit more,” Clark said. “A lot of times the people I’m guarding get back on defense, so I have a bit more free rein, like chasing the ball, while our bigs are probably boxing and hitting a bit more. So credit to them. I think we’re really good if I can get him off the edge and push him in transition, so I take a lot of pride in chasing him off the edge and then really going.
However, turnovers continue to erode Clark’s record: She had six on Wednesday night and leads the league with 5.5 per game. NaLyssa Smith added 11 points and Erica Wheeler had nine points off the bench for the Fever in a big second half.
Indiana, which has won five of seven, is on its first four-game winning streak at home since August 2015.
“The confidence that we’ve been able to build over the last three games is, you know, continuing to take a step forward and learning every game, and if we lose one, how are we going to respond?” Clark said. “That’s been a big thing for us too. In the last game we lost, we found a way to respond and get three straight wins. I think we’ve gotten a lot better over the last three games and we’ll continue to build on that.”
Ariel Atkins had 27 points to lead the Mystics (2-12), who were missing injured starters Brittney Sykes and Shakira Austin. Karlie Samuelson had 16 points and Stephanie Dolson 14.
Elsewhere on Wednesday night, reigning champion Las Vegas Aces put their recent troubles behind them as Jackie Young scored 32 points, A’ja Wilson added 27 and they celebrated the return of All-Star point guard Chelsea Gray by beating Seattle.
Gray, a five-time All-Star and 2020 Olympic gold medalist who will head to the Paris Games next month, had seven assists, four rebounds and two blocks with one point in 15:30 minutes. Gray missed the first twelve games of the season, as well as the clincher last year when Las Vegas defeated the Liberty for their second straight championship.
“Man, I missed this game so much. Never take it for granted,” Gray said. “It’s a long journey, a lot of crying, a lot of sleepless nights, a lot of conversations. I am so grateful to be on this field again.”
Kelsey Plum scored 11 points for Las Vegas (7-6), which has lost four of its last six games.