Becky Hammon and the Las Vegas Aces got to watch Caitlin Clark and the red-hot Indiana Fever up close this week.
The Aces, two-time champions, won both games at Gainbridge Fieldhouse – beating the Fever 86-75 on Wednesday and 78-74 on Friday. But Hammon was impressed by Indiana’s standout trio of Clark, Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell.
“They’re a real three-headed monster,” Hammon said. “You have to play defensively against that team, otherwise they’re too good offensively. We don’t want to get into a situation where we have to score more goals than them, because they really have some incredible scorers.”
“You are a real three-headed monster.”
Becky Hammon, head coach of the Las Vegas Aces, on the game against the Fever. https://t.co/0DwhDw9vRR pic.twitter.com/HyC6uqJwDi
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) 13 September 2024
Mitchell is Indiana’s leading scorer through 38 games this season, averaging 19.3 points per game. Boston is averaging nearly a double-double with 14.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game, and Clark is averaging 19.1 points per game and just broke the WNBA single-season record for assists on Friday night.
The Fever look very different than they did in the first few weeks of the regular season. After losing eight of its first nine games, Indiana has an 18-11 record since the season began in June and an 8-4 record since returning from the WNBA’s month-long Olympic break.
If the regular season ended today, the Fever would play the Connecticut Sun in a best-of-three series in the opening round of the playoffs. Indiana is 1-3 against Connecticut this season, but its first three losses all came before June 10. The Fever defeated the Sun 84-80 at home on August 28.
While the Fever are not yet championship contenders, Hammon and the rest of the WNBA are aware that Indiana is on the rise.
