In Caitlin Clark’s rookie season, the Indiana Fever have clinched their first playoff berth since 2016.
Thanks to losses by the Chicago Sky and Atlanta Dream on Tuesday night, the Fever secured one of the WNBA’s eight playoff spots.
Bleacher Report@BleacherReport
FEVER ARE HEADING TO THE PLAYOFFS IN CAITLIN CLARK’S ROOKIE YEAR 🚨🤯<br><br>Postseason drought is officially over in Indiana 😤 <a href=”https://t.co/QaGUje9IB8″>pic.twitter.com/QaGUje9IB8</a>
Updated WNBA Playoff Standings
- New York Liberty (27-6)
Connecticut Sun (24-9)
Minnesota Lynx (24-9)
Las Vegas Aces (21-12)
Seattle Storm (20-13)
Indiana Fever (17-16)
Phoenix Mercury (17-17)
Chicago Sky (11-22)
Atlanta Dream (11-22)
Washington Mystics (10-23)
Dallas Wings (9-24)
Los Angeles Sparks (7-25)
Italics indicates team clinched playoff berth. Standings via WNBA.com.
Seven of the eight spots in the postseason are set. The Sky and Dream are currently tied for the final spot with matching 11-22 records, but Chicago owns the tiebreaker right now with a 2-1 record against Atlanta.
Those two teams will play one more time on September 17 at Wintrust Arena in the penultimate game of the regular season for both clubs.
The Liberty have a comfortable cushion for the No. 1 seed. Their lead over the Connecticut Sun and Minnesota Lynx is at three with seven games remaining. They have the tiebreaker over the Sun with a 3-1 record in their four matchups.
New York and Minnesota have split two head-to-head meetings thus far. The two teams will play again on Sept. 15 with the Liberty hosting the Lynx.
The Fever were able to earn a postseason spot on a night when they didn’t play. They have earned the title of team that no one wants to go up against in a playoff series.
Head coach Christie Sides’ team has won four straight games since the All-Star and Olympic hiatus. They are 8-2 in their last 10 games and 16-8 since losing eight of their first nine games to start the season.
Clark is on a tear reminiscent of what she was doing in college at Iowa. The Rookie of the Year favorite is averaging 20.9 points, 10.1 assists and 6.2 rebounds in 19 starts since June 16. She has 10 double-doubles and one triple-double during this stretch.
Indiana’s 17 wins are its most since the 2016 team finished 17-17. The Fever are looking to clinch their first winning season since 2015 (20-14) when they reached the WNBA Finals.
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