Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever were eliminated from the WNBA Playoffs on Wednesday at the hands of Alyssa Thomas and the Connecticut Sun, 87-81. This was the Fever’s first playoff appearance since the 2016 season. Behind the trio of Clark, Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell, the Fever used a strong second half of the season surge to secure the sixth seed in the WNBA standings.
But their hot play was not enough as the Sun reached the WNBA Semifinals for the sixth consecutive season. The Sun have a star duo in Thomas and DeWanna Bonner, but they’ve been powered by the midseason trade acquisition of Marina Mabrey.
Mabrey was the difference-maker in Game 1 with 27 points off the bench. With Tyasha Harris out due to injury for Game 2, Mabrey stepped into the starting lineup and poured in 17 points, two rebounds, six assists and two blocked shots.
It was Alyssa Thomas though who led the way for the Sun with 19 points, five rebounds, 13 assists and one steal. She shot 9-of-17 from the field. The Sun also got 15 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two steals from Bonner. The Sun will now await the winner of the Minnesota Lynx/Phoenix Mercury series. The Lynx currently hold a 1-0 lead.
Caitlin Clark, Fever eliminated in WNBA quarterfinals
This may not have been the ending that the Fever wanted this season, swept at the hands of the Sun, but there’s still quite a bit they can be proud of. This team was left for dead when they began the season at 1-8.
But following a much-needed rest period during the Olympic break, the Fever were one of the hottest teams in during the second half.
The Fever were powered by their star trio of Clark, Boston and Mitchell. And this was a long time coming for Mitchell who made the first postseason appearance of her career. She is an unrestricted free agent this coming offseason though and she’s sure to have several interested teams.
But the pairing of Clark and Boston is something the Fever can build upon. They should make re-signing Mitchell a major priority, but in any case they have two foundational stars to anchor the team going forward.
Both Boston and Clark were selected to the WNBA All-Star team as rookies and it’s pretty much a given that the Fever will have back-t0-back Rookie of the Year winners. If the Fever can keep improving, they’ll most certainly be back next season.
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