The Sparks burnt the Indiana Fever’s best winning streak since 2015. Kelsey Plum and Co. picked apart the Fever defense while Cameron Brink showed why she is a talent on par with Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark. She might have failed to score, but the forward had 5 blocks and 3 rebounds, making the Fever attack look toothless while she was on the court. But, well, it could have been foreseen, given the Sparks have been the bogey team for Stephanie White’s side this season. Or was it the only reason? 

The last time they faced the Sparks, the Fever were on a two-game winning run, looking to continue their momentum. But Lynne Roberts’ squad crashed the party back then, and this time, they ruined the celebration all over again. While Kelsey Mitchell was back to her old self, scoring 34 points and 6 assists, the Sparks were way ahead. A Caitlin Clark-less side could not find that punch despite showing heart and almost coming back from a 22-point deficit.

The Fever went on a 21-5 run to cut the lead to six points with 2:09 left. Plum and Co. kept their cool and closed out the game with a couple of free throws. It seemed that the Sparks could score whenever they wanted, and White wasn’t shying away from pointing out the cause. 

“I feel like we still missed open opportunities. We didn’t take shots when they presented themselves, but they’re going to make shots and there’s no doubt about that. But we got to we got to get better on the defensive end of the floor,” the head coach noted in the post-game conference. 

Defensive lapse has long been an issue for the Indiana Fever. Singing Natasha Howard and picking Makayla Timpson was an attempt to close the gap after finishing 11th in the ratings last year. They have shown flashes. Lexie Hull has been particularly gritty, while the Commissioner Cup Championship was won on a defensive game. And White hasn’t gone without acknowledging Timpson’s ‘good instincts’ on that end of the floor. But there’s still a long path ahead, ranking 7th in the league, and it became glaringly evident Tuesday night.

The Indiana Fever shot at 44.2% while the Sparks scored a whopping 56.1%. The home team proved to be more efficient on the floor while penetrating the Fever paint regularly– 48 points scored under the basket. Kelsey Mitchell & Co. have been conceding 37.1 points per game from the paint — among the worst in the league — and the Sparks recognized the weakness. 

Fever even lost the rebounding battle 32-27 as Aliyah Boston and Natasha Howard failed to compensate for the rest of the team. While the Fever aren’t the league’s weakest defenders, their struggles in the paint are starting to stand out, giving future opponents a blueprint to exploit until Indiana finds a way to plug that gap.

Caitlin Clark’s injury forced Indiana to find themselves

Caitlin Clark’s absence was a huge blow for the Indiana Fever, or so everyone thought. Their initial losses to the Mystics and the Suns– two lower-ranked teams — showed the team wasn’t prepared to go on without her. But that was all there was to it– preparedness. As the season progressed and the reigning ROTY remained sidelined, the Fever adapted to new mindsets– with and without Clark. Soon the scorecard read 8-7 in her absence, while new names took spotlight every game.

So was Clark being sidlined a blessing in disguise for the Fever? A reporter asked Kelsey Mitchell, “Has that made you a better team, having to kind of switch what you’re doing a little bit?” If there are positives, the Fever veteran is noting them down. 

“I like to think that it’s made us who we are. You know we can’t control you know what we can’t control, but I think under our circumstances we’ve had you know really good really great players step up in really good times,” she said. 

Mitchell herself has been torching the court more often than not in the last few games. Aliyah Boston has kept her consistent pace while giving them some force in the paint. Natasha Howard does “whatever they need,” day in and day out. Sophie Cunningham has found her niche in outside shooting.  Like White has said before, Clark’s injury could be a “blessing in disguise because everybody else finds themselves.”  That does not mean they are better without her, but it means her absence gave others space and opportunity to grow. 

The loss exposed a glaring weakness: their porous interior defense. While they continue working through that, Clark’s injury has forced the team to step up. It was the problem that the team likely needed. Barring their interior defense issues, they are peaking at the right time. Fever will likely remain without Clark, but even with that, they will look to bounce back in their next game against the Phoenix Mercury.