ATLANTA — The Indiana Fever renaissance continues with a fourth-straight win Friday night, taking down the Atlanta Dream, 91-79, at State Farm Arena in downtown Atlanta on Friday night.

 

The Fever (7-10) have won four straight for the first time since 2015, and have won six of their past eight games.

Fever win four straight games for first time since 2015

On Friday, with three straight wins under their belt, the Fever needed just one more to break a nine-year mark. At a sold-out crowd of 17,575 at State Farm Arena, they got it.

The Fever have now won four games in a row for the first time since Tamika Catchings was an active player and Stephanie White was Indiana’s coach. It was the last year the Fever went to the WNBA Finals as the No. 3 seed in the East, falling to the Minnesota Lynx.

Fever build, then maintain lead

Indiana’s first half was shaping up to be very similar to last week’s game against the Dream in Indianapolis. Indiana built a strong lead Friday night in Atlanta, leading 57-41 at halftime.

Last week, Indiana led by 15 points, 49-44, at half — and they almost let the lead slip away. The Dream fought back, led by All-Star Rhyne Howard, to lead the Fever in the fourth quarter and nearly steal a victory. It took a career-matching 27 points from Aliyah Boston (10 in the fourth) for the Fever to pull out the win.

This time, Indiana didn’t let that happen. With Howard out with an ankle injury, the Fever kept distance from the Dream for the entire game. Atlanta got within nine points at one point in the third quarter, but the Fever then went on an 11-3 run to put the game away.

 

Four starters — Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston, Kelsey Mitchell, and NaLyssa Smith — each scored in double figures for the third straight game, and fellow starter Kristy Wallace added seven points.

Smith led the Fever with 21 points, while Boston finished with a double-double (10 points and 10 rebounds).

Caitlin Clark eclipses 100 assists

Fever rookie Caitlin Clark is in good company.

Her first assist Friday night, Clark eclipsed 100 on the season in just 17 games, tying her for third-fastest in WNBA history with Seattle Storm legend Sue Bird. That assist came just seconds into the game — Clark passed the ball to a cutting Kelsey Mitchell, who easily scored a layup.

The Fever rookie has always maintained her passing is an underrated part of her game. The NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer is known for her logo 3-point shots and smooth baskets, but she also has elite court vision.

That passing also comes with risks — Clark specializes in behind-the-back, no-look, and cross-court passes, and those passes take time to learn with new teammates. Clark currently averages 5.5 turnovers per game and leads the league with 88, but those in-game turnovers have decreased as Clark learned her teammates and her teammates learned her style.

Clark finished Friday’s game with seven turnovers compared to seven assists.

How many points did Caitlin Clark score?

Clark scored 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field (4-of-8 from 3) to go along with seven assists and three rebounds against the Dream.

 

HOT NEWS: 

CAITLIN CLARK WAS CHALLENGED BY A TEAMMATE IN FRONT OF THE TEAM DURING INDIANA FEVER PRACTICE

WNBA and Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark was challenged by teammate NaLyssa Smith. The challenge occurred in front of the entire team during the day’s practice.

The challenge began after an intense shooting practice, when NaLyssa proposed a duel to Caitlin, both players accepted the proposal with enthusiasm, turning the tense moment into a very funny show with laughter and celebrations for the rest of the team.

Caitlin Clark challenged by NaLyssa Smith

The friendly competition between Caitlin Clark and NaLsyssa Smith not only showed off their skills, but also their competitive spirit and ability to motivate each other and infect the team with positive energy.

Caitlin Clark, known for her scoring ability and accuracy on long shots, did not disappoint. With the eyes of the entire team on them, both Clark and Smith were able to hit impressive half-court shots, sparking a wave of applause and celebration among their teammates and the coaching staff.

The interaction between Caitlin and NaLyssa is a perfect example of how healthy competition and mutual support can take a team to the next level. The Indiana Fever are showing that their team spirit is as strong as their individual talent, promising a season full of success and exciting moments.

HOT NEWS: 

ANGEL REESE AND THE WNBA ARE GETTING DESTROYED BY SOCIAL MEDIA AFTER EMBARRASSING NEW VIDEO SHOWS THE SKY ROOKIE GETTING AWAY WITH THE WORST DOUBLE-DRIBBLE YOU’LL EVER SEE

Angel Reese (Photo via WNBA/Twitter)
Angel Reese seemed to have found her “special whistle” because it certainly was not blown when it should’ve during her most recent game.

The Chicago Sky had just done something that no other player in WNBA history has ever done before, but her making history became a footnote to one play during Thursday’s game against the Dallas Wings.

With less than four minutes to go in the third quarter, Reese intercepted a pass and found herself all alone as she dribbled the other way for an easy layup.

The replay of this moment showed that the dynamic rookie got away with multiple double dribbles and quite possibly a traveling violation on this one single play.

Yet, no refs whistled the play dead.

Another view from that play showed Angel Reese laughing hysterically, as she likely knew she had gotten away with multiple violations.

SHE’S SPECIAL 🌟

Angel Reese had a record-breaking performance today for the Chicago Sky:

16 PTS (7-13 FG)

18 REB (career-high)

8 OFF REB

3 AST

2 STL

ONLY rookie to ever record 7 consecutive double-doubles#WelcometotheW pic.twitter.com/0DCg4s4uYj

Fans wasted no time taking to the comments and blasting the refs as well as Reese for this blatant violation that went unwhistled:

Despite the mishap in this play, Angel Reese is starting to pave her way at the professional level, especially over the past month. Since June 1, she’s averaged 13.4 points per game with 12.8 rebounds.

Angel Reese Did Something No Other Player In WNBA History Has Done

Chicago Sky’s Angel Reese snagged a rebound and layup against the Dallas Wings on Thursday, and with that, she became the first rookie in WNBA history to record a double-double in seven consecutive games.

In the contest, Reese finished with astounding numbers, racking up 16 points and 18 rebounds as the Sky ended their four-game losing streak, per ESPN.com.