Fever outlast Sparks behind Caitlin Clark, Kelsey Mitchell

Despite keeping it close throughout, the Sparks ran out of steam as Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell powered the Fever to a victory.

The Sparks kept it close with the Fever, but a healthy dose of Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell late proved enough to lead Indiana to a win, 91-86.

Odyssey Sims had a stellar game, scoring 20 points and going 7-13 from the field. Dearica Hamby dropped 16 points with her sevne rebounds. Kia Nurse added 13 points.

Azurá Stevens had a great game with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Rae Burrell pitched in with 16 points off the bench. Rickea Jackson had a quiet outing, finishing with just five points on 2-11 shooting.

Both teams came out with high energy and the offense was clicking Both Sims and Hamby were off to a hot start for Los Angeles. Although the Sparks were keeping up, Indiana jumped ahead by five with three minutes left in the quarter.

They extended their lead to nine on a 10-3 run. LA’s offense had become stagnant but they slowly started clicking again. At the end of the first, Indiana was up by four.

The Sparks carried a 9-2 run into the second frame as they were starting to steal the momentum away from the Fever. Nurse was cooking from behind the arc, knocking down two of her first three attempts.

Nurse was the first player in double figures for either team. The Sparks took the lead by one after a steal and fastbreak layup by Hamby. The Fever started playing sloppy and the Sparks took advantage as their lead extended to five.

The three ball was falling for Los Angeles with Stevens coming into the game and contributing with two of her own. The Fever started to creep back in, cutting the deficit to three. A pair of free throws by Katie Lou Samuelson trimmed the deficit to just one, a margin that held to halftime.

The second half started with turnovers for both teams before Sims eventually converted on a layup. Neither team had established any momentum for themselves and kept trading baskets. The Fever tied the game on a layup by Kelsey Mitchell.

A 5-0 run by Caitlin Clark put Indiana up by five. This game was a great battle as both teams played at the same level. Four straight points for the Sparks cut the deficit back to one. Each time had the answers whenever the other went on a run.

The Sparks played nice defense, but the Fever slightly distanced themselves and went up by four at the end of the third.

The final frame began with a three-ball by Burrell to cut the deficit to one. The Sparks have had many lackluster fourth quarters, so they’d have to be near-perfect to steal a win. Like clockwork, LA looked like they were beginning to unravel and the Fever went up by eight.

The young Sparks managed to cut the deficit to four as they continued to play hard despite their offense stalling. It was a three-point game with 3:32 left and LA was not going away, keeping it close in the end.

Odyssey Sims came up with a big steal of Clark before an and-one layup kept it a three-point game. Lexie Hull knocked down two free throws after being fouled by Stevens with a minute left in the game.

A turnover by Li Yueru led to a layup by Aliyah Boston that put the final nail in the coffin for the Sparks.

Key Takeaways:

With no playoffs in sight, the Sparks have to build on things to take into next season, and with another game with multiple players in double figures, that’s a huge positive to build on.

Even with a loss, something we’ve seen so much this season, the bench still played excellent with 32 points.

LA consistently has not been able to close out games in the second half after having great first halves.

The Sparks’ next game will be against the Chicago Sky on Friday at 6:30 PM PT.

You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.